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Getting Married in Hong Kong for Foreigners

My husband is a Korean and I am a Filipino so some might think the wedding is either in the Philippines or in Korea. I can consider getting married outside the country of residence for both parties unconventional but I like unconventional. Why Hong Kong?

Hong Kong is a neutral ground for us.

I get to keep my family name as I please.

I was challenged by the fact that I had to file the necessary requirements while I was still in the Philippines and off to HK only days before the actual ceremony.

I didn’t like to be involved with the schemes Philippines has to offer for someone marrying a foreigner. I know it will just cause delay of papers and under the table transactions. That’s a known fact.

Going to Korea just to get married wasn’t a good idea since I got denied the first time I applied for tourist visa. I thought It’s better not to push on it because maybe it’s not meant to happen there.

The instructions posted on the HK Gov’t site was so clear that it backed me up with our decision to go for it.

Prescribed Fee for giving and exhibition of Intended Marriage is HK$305. I paid ours in the form of bank draft at BPI Makati, Philippines since they are one of those few banks that have 3rd currency. Payable to: The Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (Note: Make sure that the bank draft is drawable in HK currency or else you’ll have to pay an additional bank handling of HK$100 for exchanging of currency)

After you sent all the requirements, you’ll receive an email from this email address: mrro@immd.gov.hk about the update of your request. You must appear on or before the deadline shown on the email or else you’ll do the process all over again and it will be a waste of time and money. You need to show yourself at 3/F, Low Block Queensway Government Offices, 66 Queensway, Hong Kong (Counter 20) together with your original passports and a print out of the confirmation letter. A nice officer will ask you to verify if all the information on the documents are correct then, you’ll be asked to make an oath. You’ll also get the receipt of the bank draft you sent for the notice of intent of marriage.

On the day of the ceremony…

Things to remember:

Don’t forget to bring 2 witnesses above the age of 18 and with valid passports.

Don’t forget your passports.

The fee of HK$715 will be paid on the day itself before the ceremony starts.

It is optional to have wedding rings.

Wear formal clothes but if you’re the type who doesn’t want to be too formal to wear a wedding gown at least be decent enough not to wear clothes that are too casual like mini skirt,shorts, and the like.

The ceremony will take less than 30 minutes. Once the ceremony is done, you have to report the marriage on your respective embassies so that it will be properly documented.

Hi, Carla. The Philippine Embassy in Hong Kong will not
provide your marriage certificate. The Hong Kong
Registry will give your marriage certificate before the
start of the ceremony in which you and your husband-to-be will sign. What you will do after that is to report that
marriage to the Philippine Embassy in Hong Kong. The
turnaround time for your marriage record to be available
in NSO will be 2-4 months. That applies to all marriages
done outside the Philippines. For you to check if it is
already available you’ll have to call or go to DFA and they
will provide reference no, dispatch no, and transmitted
date so that NSO will be able to find it. I got mine in
just 2 months. Bank draft is like your regular cheque to
be issued exactly by the bank and you can choose the
currency. The conversion is real-time like when you are
buying dollars. Basically you are buying the dollar and the
bank will change it in the form of cheque. Yes, the
process of preparing the requirements was easy for me. I
am proud to say that I did it all by myself without the
help of anyone aside from the instruction provided by the
Hong Kong government website. I’m so pleased on how
fast and organized they process everything.

HI. Badly need your help. You blog helped me a lot. I am getting married this May in Hongkong. I already prepared most of the requirements. However, I am just curious regarding the forms. My fiance and i both have kids but not married. Is it a must that we declare our kids? Thank you so much. I hope you will find time to reply to me. Thanks so much.

I’d like to believe they do. I think you should always act as if there is always a background investigation in everything esp. if it deals with our documents. We should always remain truthful to avoid future problems.

Hi there! I just need to verify that im on the right track with our paperworks. Me and fiancee are planning to get married in hongkong this coming 8th of june 2014. Will the registry of marriage give you the option to choose when your wedding date will be? We already have tickets booked for june 5-10 so we wanted to squeeze everything we need to do on our 5 days stay. Also, to notarize the forms, should it be done per page or just on the 1st page? Information will greatly appreciated! Thank you!

Hi, Josh. Yes, you can pick the wedding date you want but the approval still depends on the availability. As for the docs that are needed to be notarized it is stated on the HK gov’t website or on the paper itself once you have them printed. I don’t remember the details coz I got married in 2011 but what I do remember is I just followed all the instructions. I hope everything goes well. Cheers!

Hello sir i want to askI’m pilipino married in german guy here in Hong Kong, i did report our married in Philippines consulate.i only want to know if i also reported our marriage in gerMan consulate..what doc ineed

I didn’t marry a German. I can only say my experience. For Koreans, the marriage contract given in HK must be authenticated. That same paper was brought by my husband to Korea to register our marriage there. Once it’s already registered in Korea, he got a paper as proof that it’s already registered. That paper will be used in filing for spouse visa. I can only assume the process is similar in other countries if not the same. You better let your husband look in to it to be accurate.

Thank you for the rply He bring the doc in germany to register our marriage certificate now its okay only one things missing the officer there told him that our marriage certificate must have apostille so he send back to me..and request the person can notarized or can give that apostille i don’t know what’s that….is that like a red ribbon right thanks again

Hi. It’s me again. I already sent my requirements in Hong Kong. However, they informed me i made a mistake in the notary part. They need an official endorsement. But when i asked them what is official endorsement, no reply from them. I just want to ask about that? Where or how to get that official endorsement? Thank you so much.

I don’t remember any official endorsement. Probably because I didn’t experience that mistake and I got married last 2011. I can’t remember the details. Keep reading the requirements they listed on the HK gov’t site and you’ll know what to send to them to correct your mistake. If you are still having a hard time, ask someone else to read the requirments for you and discuss the mistake you made. That someone can see exactly your papers and explain the requirements. Hopefully, that person can see what you fail to see and correct your mistake.

Hi, i was married in HK last February 26,2014. Regarding Bank Draft, you cant do in HK. You should have bank account there they dont do it for you. What happen is my husband do the bank draft in the U.S and send to their City Hall. The HK City Hall will give you the address where you can send the bank draft. And they will tell how much you going to pay for the request marriage certificate. You will not get your MC in the Philippine Embassy. If your marriage will do in the City Hall maybe you can get that day your MC. My marrieage was a Civil Celebrant. Ask The City Hall in HK what will you do to get a certified copy of your MC. I hope this can help a little for you.

hi, Good day im joyce. we are planning to get married in hongkong this year if possible. i have the two forms already, do i need to fill up all the pages? including the statutory declaration from the form of notice of intended of marriage? or shall i fill only the papers that my fiance and i are applicable, theres also consent to a marriage to minor in the form, were not minor anymore, do i need it to fill up also and send? or only the applicable ones? thanks, im just making sure everything i send is correct..

Im married in the phils but now based in canada and was able to divorce my spouse. Im planning on marrying my partner a filipino based in phils. Will the phil embassy recognize our marriage ( planning to have it in hk) ? The reason were getting married in hk is for me to be able to get my partner here in canada. Im not yet a canadian citizen so im still under phil law where divorce is not accepted. Badly need your advice.

If your ex-spouse is a foreigner, it doesn’t matter where you got married because you’ll be allowed to re-marry as long as you have the foreign divorce decree be recognized by the Philippine court. Take note that it’s a judicial process and it’s called petition for recognition of foreign divorce decree if I’m not mistaken. But if your ex-spouse is or was a Filipino at the time of marriage, even if you got divorced in Canada, your marriage status in the Philippines is still married. The only time you can re-marry is if either of you have filed for annulment and has been approved in the Philippines. Make sure that your status in the NSO is not married because wherever you get married if your intention is to get your Pinoy fiancé the Canadian Embassy will definitely be asking for NSO Marriage Certificate and that will only be available if the marriage outside the country has been reported to the Philippine Embassy. Fix your papers to avoid problems in the future. Note: I’m not a lawyer but I’m giving advice based on what I read and heard on a lawyer’s radio program. I tried to know as much as I could legally before I got married with my husband and before marrying outside the country. Getting married is really a very serious stuff so all documents should be correct -_-a Here is the link for people with your status who wants to marry in HK. Make sure your NSO status is not married first ^^ http://m.www.gov.hk/en/residents/immigration/bdmreg/marriage/marreg/givingnotice/supportdocuments.htm

hi! im a christian married in the Philippines and now im working in the middle eastern country. i have met a muslim man and we both got in-love. he wants to marry me and i want to marry him also…can i process divorce from here and get married in hongkong? or can i still marry him in hongkong even if im not yet divorcing my husband? pls give me some enlightenment…im so confused already…i really love this man and need to be with him forever!!!

Hi Ruby, it’s nice to know that you are in love but I can’t answer your question because I have not experienced that and I’m not a lawyer. But what I know is getting married in HK is not an escape from your previous marriage. If you are a Filipino, you follow laws in the Philippines. In terms of marriage, we don’t have divorce esp. if you are married to a Filipino. Try to talk to a lawyer and ask for consultation about your situation.

Hi,
I am a naturalized Canadian citizen married in the Phils but already divorced to a Filipina now also a Canadian citizen and planning to marry my Filipina fiance in Hong kong. There’s no way for us to file an annulmenf in the Phils for we are both a Canadian citizen. Do I am allowed to marry my fiance and sponsor here in Canada?

I am not a lawyer so I’m can’t exactly answer in terms of legalities. In my opinion, if you are no longer a Filipino then you are no longer covered by Philippine law. But it might create a problem if you are trying to sponsor someone from the Philippines since they check the NSO records if I’m not mistaken. So my best advice for this is to check with a lawyer in the Philippines first to avoid problems.

we have exactly the same problem Couch..and I am looking for the answers as well..on how to get my Fil Fiance(who’s still in the Phil.) while I am here in Canada as a Permanent resident, still a Filipino..and was divorced here in Canada… I saw that your post was still last 2012. I hope you found an answer already, and I hope you can share it with me. Thanks in advance!

If you have your divorce or annulment paper you can marry in HK. Requirements are divorce paper, no record of marriage (senomar) from Census because you will present that to Philippine Embassy. They make sure you dont have a previous marriage. If you have all this requirements then you can go.

Hello! Thank you for this information. My fiance and I would also like to get married in Hong Kong this December because he is Moroccan and does not need a visa. However we both live in Qatar, I am English and need the services of someone in Hong Kong to help us with the paperwork. Could you recommend someone?? Many thanks

Hi! I don’t know anyone who could help you out with the paperwork since I did everything by myself without going there. The process is really simple and not difficult to follow. You can process everything there in Qatar as long as you have the documents with you and just communicate with them thru email. They answer fast. If you plan to get married on December, you better start sending them the requirements because you have to consider the availability of the registry on your requested date. Good luck to you and your fiancé.

Hi! I just sent my bank draft but I just realized it may be short a couple of us dollars due to conversion! (I sent a US bank draft). Would they possibly just allow me to pay the difference for the commision fee when I arrive? I hope Im not the first person this has happened to!! Please any advice! Maybe I should send them another check?

If there is a problem with the requirements you sent like lacking of papers or in your case the amount of the bank draft, I’m sure they will send you an email. In my case, I lack a certain document the first time I sent so they emailed me immediately upon receiving it. I bet they will do the same thing with you. The same goes when all the requirements are complete. No need to fret. They will instruct you what to do. You can also email them if you are too worried. The email address is just above. The main reason why I had my bank draft in HK dollars instead of another currency was the problem with conversion and transaction fee for exchanging it to HK dollar once received by them. Ask for their advice first if you really want to send a new bank draft because that might complicate things. In my opinion that can be fine if you are 100% sure they haven’t changed the bank draft yet and you should send them an email about it first. I hope everything goes well. Update me, will you? ;)

thanks so much for taking the time to respond! i’ve been totally freaking out about it! hopefully they will let me pay the few dollars difference when i arrive and show the original documents…that would make sense but sometimes government places can be “difficult” :) ill definitely write back as soon as i get the email!
quick question, how long from the date they received your package did they actually email you and confirm receipt? just curious how long they take to process. i sent it express so its due for arrival on monday.

They emailed me May 4 that I lack a certain document. I sent them the lacking paper the next day via express mail, May 5. They emailed me May 12 stating all the requirements are in. They also mentioned that we must be there on or before May 31 to complete the formalities. Once you have completed the formalities, they will give you the bank draft receipt.

hi i just want to ask how many days after you send the requirements will require you to show on their embassy?because we already booked our flight going to hongkong on january and we plan to get married during our stay on hong kong for just five days..

Kindly check my comment below regarding the days. After sending the requirements, you will not report to the embassy but to the HK gov’toffice. They will send you the address. Going to the embassy of you and your spouse’s country is done after the ceremony or before you leave. We did ours immediately after the ceremony since the embassies are walking distance but not very near. Just be mindful about the embassy schedule. We also stayed in HK for 5days at that time.

Hi,
I’d like to ask some questions if it’s okay:
Is the process exactly the same if we intend to get married in a Church and not in a civil ceremony?
Can I notarize those forms that you specified in ANY notary republic in the Philippines?
Do you think I could send it through other BPI braches, or is Makati the only branch that has the 3rd currency?
The documents that you sent are supposed to be in place of the online appointment booking, right?
Oh, and can I leave the “fill in Chinese names/characters” blank?
I’m sorry if I have to clarify these with you because the instructions in the HK website are a bit confusing for me. You’re blog is by far the simplest & clearest reference I’ve had while researching about getting married in HK.

It’s best if you check the procedure for church ceremony on the HK gov’t site since I haven’t done that but as far as I can remember it’s pretty much the same. Maybe you can even ask the church to submit the requirements on your behalf. You can notarize your documents in any notary public where you are currently residing. BPI Main Branch in Makati is the only bank that provides bank draft in 3rd currency. I don’t know with other banks. You can book the appointment online but in my opinion I don’t see the point of doing that if I’m sending them my notarized documents anyway. I can also remember the online booking must all be filled out but Filipinos don’t have national I.D. number which other countries have and it will not go to the next page if you don’t have proper entry on the said blank. Unlike with the paper form you can just put “NA” for not applicable. Same goes if you don’t have a Chinese name. That’s what I did. I’m glad you think my blog is easy to understand.

Thank you so much for taking time out to reply. I think I have a clearer picture of what I have to do. Last question, is it really difficult to get married in the municipal hall in the Philippines for foreign nationals? When I called them, they said that the requirements of the foreign national is to just prepare the “legal capacity to marry” certificate issued by the embassy and the passport. They don’t even require you to book an appointment for the short ceremony. I think that’s pretty simple, unless they failed to mention other steps…

Well, I haven’t inquired everything for myself since I didn’t have any intension to change my last name and I have to change it if I get married in the Philippines since that is the law there. That’s my main reason. I don’t know with other foreign nationals but for Koreans who want to get married in the Philippines they are required to do an interview with the consul together with the soon to be spouse. My husband was pretty busy at that time so I didn’t want him to be bothered with interview or seminar. As far as I know, the couple who will get married should attend the family planning seminar too. That’s what I heard and you can get away with it if you just pay more. I don’t want under the table transactions which the Philippine gov’t is famous for. Most gov’t offices are slow and are known for putting wrong entries on important docs. I just want to avoid such things. My wedding certificate looks far better than the my NSO marriage certificate. This is just my opinion. Just go for whatever makes you happy and satisfied.

do you know if going to the embassy after the wedding is necessary for usa and uk nationals? i cant seem to find the answer anywhere. what was your wait like when you went over there after your ceremony? thanks!!

The purpose why you have to report that to your countries’ embassy is for them to acknowledge that a new legal document was obtained by one of their citizen. It’s the same as when a foreinger gives birth in a foreign country. It must be reported for the record. In that way, your marriage certificate is valid in your country or they will make a copy in your country whenever you need it. It won’t harm to drop by to your embassies. In the Korean embassy, it was very fast. Not even close to 5 minutes. They just photocopied the marriage certificate and stamped on it. The Philippine embassy was closed early at that time so I didn’t do it myself. I had one of my witnesses do it for me but it didn’t take a long time.

I’m genuinely happy for you, Stefanie. Enjoy your stay in Hong Kong. I’m sure it will be a memorable experience for both of you. It’s my pleasure to help you. I’m happy that I’m somehow part of making your marriage happen ;) It would be nice if you could press “LIKE” or “SHARE THIS” for others to see too. ;) Cheers! ☞ ♥ Hazel

Hi, I am divorced pinay from Canada I am not citizen yet and i have a boyfriend in the Philippines and we are thinking to get married in Hongkong, Hongkong needs only the divorce certificate and identifications to get married. What to do next after the marriage?

Please refer to my previous comment. The situation is the same as yours. The bottom line is you still need to be sure that you are free to get married based on your NSO status or else the marriage will not be honored in the Philippines and petitioning your soon to be spouse will be a problem. You have to remember that after the ceremony you still have to report the marriage to the Philippine embassy and they will forward it to NSO. If your status in NSO is still married, it’s a problem. Just to clarify, I’m not a lawyer but I’m answering based on my experience and knowledge on document flows.

I don’t know any way that will not ask for NSO Marriage Certificate. As long as one or both of you are Filipinos regardless of where you get married, it will be asked. That’s the law of the country. You can ask a lawyer for another way but based on my knowledge that’s basically it.

Hi, I have 3 children, me and my common law husband are not yet married, and we plan to get married in Hong Kong, we are planning to be a family reunion after the ceremony. i am in Guam, USA and my common law husband is in Philippines, please advice me what to do and requirements needed for the schedule of our marriage.

If you are both legally single, then you should follow the usual process like what I did. It’s up to you if you want to submit all the requirements on your end or on his end. What matters is you follow the instructions on the HK gov’t site for marriage.

You can file for divorce in HK if you got married in HK but it doesn’t mean it will be accepted in the Philippines. Even if you are separated, your NSO civil status is still married. Please read my previous comments. It also applies to you.

Hi there, please could you tell me if a single status cert. must be required to get married in HK? As I didnt apply for it before I leave Argentine last year. Is there anything I can do now? As Im gonna get married with a HK lady in 3 months …..

Thanks for your reply but please could you let me know what exactly the documents are required for a foreigner to get married with a local HK citizen? Thanks for your help! CHeers! (Both of us are over 21 years of age)

I got married with also a foreigner and not with a HK national so I can’t tell you exactly what is needed in your case. I think it would be similar to the requirements we sent as foreigners. Click the link above. The gov’t website provides complete and accurate instructions for you. Please take time in reading it.

hi there!
thank you so much for this very informative blog of yours regarding getting married in hongkong,coz i am a filipina and i have an american fiancee and were planning to get married in hongkong.you really make things easy for me,but i have a little concern,about my last name after marriage coz i wish to have my fiancee’s family name so is changing your family name an option there or is it fixed that you cant change your family name if you get married in hongkong?

Thanks for the nice words. It would be nice if you could press “LIKE” or “SHARE THIS” for others to see too. ;) The good thing about getting married in HK is you have the freedom to keep or change you last name. They don’t tell you what you must do with your last name. It’s all up to you. ^^

Hi , I am filipina and I have a bf living in germany . We are planning to get married in hongkong this feb 2013 . And he is coming here by feb 16 and going to HK . What do we do first ? I read few comments and answer here . But , my bf thinking if we have to stay there for 3 weeks before our marriage . Or we can work this by online . It is possible to stay only there for 5 days . Because , 3 weeks are more expensive if we stay longer in HK . I hope you can advice me , what to do and what should I say to my bf in germany .

Pass all the requirement first. Once they have sent the confirmed date, that’s the time you plan the day you’ll go to HK. That’s what I did. I processed everything when I was still in the Philippines and went to HK just 2 days before the wedding day. We were in HK for just 5 days. It’s up to you how you will manage things. I was just confident that I could make it work as long as all the requirements are complete and the procedure is correct. Read the comments here to be guided accordingly.

Thank you for your reply , we have understood everything . But , we still have a problem and I can not read this to any blog here .
First is how long should the documents nieed to be valid . It is required or not . Because the date when my fiance translated his divorce decree in english was July 2012 . Is it ok or we have to get new .
Second we are separated I’m here in philippines , but he was in germany . All are complete and he can send immediately our papers to hongkeong . But , I can not sign to the form , because I’m here in the philippines . How can we make this , is there an other way for me to sign , even I’m here in philippines . He come to me by february and we have a plan to fly both in hongkong when everything is confirm .
Thank you for this informative blog . Goodbless.

All the documents I passed were all fresh so I have no idea regarding the validity of the papers. Just pass the requirements and if they want fresh documents they will tell it to you thru email. (Read my comments before about my story.)There was a time when my husband was in Korea when I was preparing the papers. Anyway, what matters is you read the form you need to submit. If it needs his signature, then his paper should be notarized on where he signed it. Same thing goes with you. There are instructions there on what to do. It’s either your fiancé files for it or you. Either way the signed paper should be notarized. The length of time is on the comments. Please take time reading it because it’s very long explaination and I’m trying not to answer the same questions that were asked before. It is easy when you follow the intructions. The fact that I did it on my own is enough evidence. It’s just up to you on how serious you are in making it work.

If you have the money and time to go back and forth from HK to Philippines and Germany, why not. But in my opinion, it’s surely a waste of time and money if you can do it without even going to HK while still filing the requirements and waiting for the wedding day. Again, please take time reading all the comments before.

Thank you so much , I understand now everything . And my fiance will send the form and all requirements immediately to hongkong . Thank you for this blog . All is clear now . Thanks ! for your help , it helps a lot .

hello yen, just want to ask if you continued your plan of marrying in hongkong. I have a german fiance too and we are planning to marry in HK too since getting married here in the philippines is very difficult. my question is did germany honor your marriage in hongkong. Is it legal in germany? were you able to register your marriage in a german embassy in Hongkong? or is there a german embassy in Hongkong? Thanks in advance.

getting married to a German national is not so easy if you do not have a proper documents. For example if you are a Filipina and has a previous marriage to a Filipino you must get first your annulment because Germany consulate always check all the documents even thou you have been married already in Hongkong. They will not give you right away a German fiancee visa for you to go to germany not unless they made their own investigation. Usually it took 3 months for you to wait after application.

Thank you for that info, Glenda. The same goes with getting Korean spouse visa. So many requirements should be passed. That’s why everyone must make sure that all their documents are correct esp. those who will remarry. Everything should be checked.

I perused your site and found all the input so helpful that i’ve decide to hold my wedding in HK this December. My fiance & I are both living overseas right now (I’m based in Qatar while he’s working in Yemen) but since HK is a neutral & visa-free country for the two of us, it made sense to hold our wedding there. My question is regarding cost. I hope you don’t mind giving us an idea of how much you spent for the entire process— from Submission of the required documents up until your 5-day stay in HK? Will US$5,000 be enough to cover everything, including hotel accomodation? Any recommendations for a good hotel to stay in that’s convenient and near the place where the civil marriage is to be held? Thanks very much & hope to hear from you soonest!

Hi there! I don’t mind telling you how much I spent but I need to get back to you regarding that. I’ll provide a breakdown. What I can tell now is we stayed in Hong Kong for 5 days with just HK$ 3000 (US$386.90) in our pockets and still had remaining money when we got back to the Philippines. By the way, our food, hostel, and registry payment were also covered by that pocket money. That’ s how good I am in budgeting. ;) As for the hotel, I can’t suggest any coz we only stayed in the cheapest hostel we found in the area on the day we arrived. We stay in Jordan near the subway. I really did everything on a budget coz I had no intention of spending a lot of money. That’s what I am. ;) If you are interested with the name of the hostel, just let me know. :)

Just to give you heads up the hostel we stayed in looks crappy. It’s just enough for sleeping and washing up. We also didn’t bring valuable stuff with us so we’re not worried if in case we leave our things. They also don’t speak English. We were able to communicate with them because we called one of our witnesses who is a HK national and can speak Cantonese. The reason we chose to stay there was because the lady was accomodating even if we don’t speak Cantonese. She made an effort to make it work and with a smile. Plus the price is good ;) but I need to find the calling card. But I have two calling cards of the places we checked but didn’t pick. All near the subway station in Jordan. http://www.stay.hk and http://www.hotel.hk/hotel2/info/api_map.php?id=17008. Checking the place onsite works better for me rather than booking online.

Oh my goodness! It’s all itemized! Ure very efficient…you could be a wedding planner! :-) And here I was preparing to spend at least US$5k! We’ll save it for the pregnancy, haha! Thanks! Btw, I sent an email to request for a copy of the Notice of Intended Marriage form & the Information Required for Registration of Marriage but i got a computer-generated reply saying they’ll get back to me where appropriate, as soon as possible. Does this mean I made the request too early?? Since my wedding date is still in December? I understand the booking of appointment for the Notice of Intended Marriage has to be 3months before the planned wedding date. So I don’t need to rush & submit any documents at this stage? I am such an eager-beaver :P My fiance might get the wedding jitters this early! Oh, another Q: Which Registry did you pick? The City Hall Registry or the Cotton Tree Registry? Again, thank you for your time & input. You are an angel helping soon-to-be brides like me. God bless you!

Please consider that the price of our plane ticket is like that because it was from Manila, PhilippinesHong Kong. Maybe you need to a lot more on your plane ticket since you will come elsewhere. I went for the Cottontree Drive Registry. Almost all foreigners getting married are held in that place and the area is nice coz it’s located at the park. I’ll try to post the pictures of the place to give you an idea. You don’t have to email them for the copy of Intended Marriage Form coz it’s already on the website. I created a link on my blog entry. You just have to click my link and print it. The only time I emailed them was to tell them that I have submitted all my papers. You have to remember that there is a timeline that you must have the wedding after submitting all the requirements. I think it’s too early to submit the requirements for a December wedding at this point unless you are aiming for a specific registry, wedding date, and time that you know a lot of people would also want to have like for example before 12-12-2012 12:00 :D something like that. Read my previous comments on how it went with mine but basically my marriage notice was exhibited on May 12, 2011 and they reserved the date June 2, 2011 for the ceremony. Happy to help as always, Hazel♥

Good day! I just would like to double check if the answer in the question in a form if what type of visa? Is it a waiver visa or visit visa? And I’m interested with the hostel that you stayed is it possible to know the name? Do we need to ahead of time or walk in will do? Thank you very much!

Excellent!Thank you! But I have another question, Is this hostels are located near to the area like registry,66 Queensway,Cotton Tree Road ,airport,..etc Like how does the transportation goes around the area that we have to go through.Thank’s for your help:-)

Check the link to view the subway map so you’ll have an idea. http://hong-kong-travel.org/MTR/ In my case, we stayed near Jordan Station which happens to be near Admiralty Station. From there,it’s just 6 minute walk to Cottontree Drive Registry. Of course the route will depend on what registry location you choose.

hi there, your blog is better than the instructions by th HK government. i just want to ask if i would send the requirements this first week of february and we intend to marry by april 22,2013. would i be allowed to register the marriage at the Phil. Consul if my fiance is marrried here in the Phil but got divorce in the US? thanks much :)

I appreciate that you think my instructions are understandable. Based on the HK gov’t website, you have to send the notice of intended marriage 3 months before the planned wedding date. You have to consider if the registry you want is available on the date you want. So it depends. You’re going to put that on the form you’ll send anyway. I didn’t care about the wedding date in my case. Check my previous comments about my experience so you’ll have an idea. Regarding your fiancé, if he’s not a Filipino I think he is not under the Philippine law but it’s better that his marriage with his ex-wife that he married in the Philippines is exactly finished legally so that you wont have any problem. You have to remember that their marriage is registered in NSO and they wont be married anymore if he already filed the foreign divorce decree and went through judicial process in the Philippines. If he didn’t fix it and the ex-wife happens to be a Filipino, then on her NSO Marriage Certificate they are still married. That’s a very complicated situation. Even if the one who should push on this is the ex-wife, it’s better to start everything right. Just to remind you, I’m not a lawyer but I’m just giving you an idea based on what I know.

Note: Divorce is not allowed in the Philippines and divorce secured anywhere by a Filipino is not recognized in the Philippines except in the case of a marriage between a Filipino citizen and a foreigner and a divorce is thereafter validly obtained abroad by the alien spouse. The foreign divorce decree must be judicially enforced in the Philippines by filing the proper civil action at the Philippine Regional Trial Court.The divorce decree must be proven in court. Proof of its authenticity and due execution must be presented.The court decision shall be registered in the Local Civil Registry Office.The registered document shall be submitted to the Local Civil Registrar where the affected civil registry documents (birth, marriages, etc.) are registered.The decision of the Philippine Court is the basis for the annotation of the divorce decree issued by the Foreign Court.”

Thank you very much! I’m just a bit disappointed because notary public is giving us a hard time to authenticate our notice for some reason saying that they need my presence as well before signing it and the BPI bank where in we have to open an account with them and then when my fiancee finally having one same day in the morning and come bank in the afternoon for the bank draft the teller said that they have a cut off in doing so.,so he need to comeback first thing in the morning the following day.,.this is what I hate the most with the system that we have back home.:-( BTW hopefully we can finish everything by tomorrow, anyways would you mind If I ask If which airmail office did you send your documents? how much and how many days it will take for the hong kong government to receive it?And with regards to the hostel we decided just to look around and just walk in within the area but looking into the map jordan is very accesible to everything. I hope everything will go smoothly just like yo’urs I am depending all my plans on your blog., As soon as we arrived in hong kong we are going straight to the registry by cab and will see from there, but if you more inputs to share that would be great.This is such a big help for us:-):-)

The notary public is not giving you a hard time that’s really how it goes when you have the documents notarized. I know that generally the system in the Philippines is not good but you could have avoided going to the bank again for the bank draft if you could have read my previous comments regarding my experience. You should have called the bank before going there because the rate is realtime and you don’t go there if it’s near closing time. When you get there in Hong Kong, it’s better to use the subway in going around than by cab. For obvious reasons that it’s more expensive and language barrier. I used EMS in sending my documents and it’s about PHP 700 at that time if I remember correctly. It’s good that my blog is really helping you but I still encourage reading the instruction in the HK government website. Also, please read my previous comments because the answer to your other question is in there. I’m trying to avoid answering again previously asked questions. I hope you understand. I suggest you really plan everything, like making a schedule and itinerary, and have a positive attitude about it. I hope everything goes well.^^

Good day ! Its me again , I’m yeny from philippines . Wr received our confirmation of marriage yesterday and our marriage in HK is March 21 .
But , we had a problem now , my german fiance will lost his original copy of divorce decree . What documents needed to bring if the original copy of divorce decree re not available . This is ok if the court can make a copy .
My fiance email:
‘I asked the court already, and they answered: The original is there only once. If the original has been lost, they make a copy. She is certified and it all depends an apostille. The legalization and apostille are originals and prove that the copy of the divorce decree corresponds to the original divorce judgment. So you must check in Hong Kong ask what documents they want if the original is not available .***********

I email this morning the Marriage registry of Hk and I’m still waiting for their reply . But , I hope you have an idea about my problem . By the way thank you , because your blog will help me a lot and we already received the confirmation date of our marriage .

Divorced Person
● In the case of a divorced person, proof of the dissolution of the former marriage by decree pronounced by a competent court is required upon giving of the notice. Before the marriage takes place, a sealed certified copy of the court’s final decree must be produced to the Registrar.
● If the divorce takes place outside Hong Kong, proof of domicile in the country where the divorce takes place is required upon giving of the notice. Otherwise, a declaration signed by the divorced person declaring his nationality and residence on the date of institution and approval of the divorce should be provided. The statutory declaration should be made and sworn or affirmed before a Registrar or a civil celebrant of marriages.
● If the person making the declaration is not in Hong Kong, the declaration should be authenticated by a Notary Public.
● If the divorce documents are not written in English or Chinese, certified translations of such are required. The Statutory Declaration Form is on the link on my blog post itself on Notice of Intended Marriage. Just click and look for it.

Since your fiancé is German, the 2nd, 3rd , and 4th applies to him. That shouldn’t be a problem. They never mentioned about original. They just mentioned ” A declaration signed by the divorced person declaring his nationality and residence on the date of institution and approval of the divorce should be provided. The statutory declaration should be made and sworn or affirmed before a Registrar or a civil celebrant of marriages.” Once it’s notarized it’s as good as the original document, that’s what I think. Just follow the instruction stated on the HK gov’t site and you’ll not go wrong. I’m glad I could help with your wedding. Cheers! ^^

“You must appear on or before the deadline shown on the email or else you’ll do the process all over again …..”

Does this dealine means the date of the marriage itself or only a notification that you should appear to them before the marriage took place. If this is a notification, we are required to go to HK for an appearance and come back on the day of the wedding? For example they gave us the dealine that we must appear on or before May 25. and our schedule of wedding is on June 25. So, we will go to HK on May 25 and comeback to the Philippines and go again on June 25 for the ceremony?. Thanks a lot. your blog is really helpful. More power to you. God Bless!!

Hi! The deadline is different from the wedding date. The purpose of that is to complete all the outstanding formalities and that is done before your chosen wedding date. You must bring the following: Original travel documents, and print-out of the confirmation letter. That’s also the time you will get the receipt from the bank check you sent.
In my case, I let them reserve the available wedding date for me. I don’t know if that’s the reason why the deadline they gave me was close to the our wedding date. I intentionally didn’t pick the wedding date because I believe the flow would be smoother if I let them pick the date. In that way, we didn’t have to return back to the Philippines and be back to HK just for the wedding date because that’s a waste of money. That was just my instinct working so I don’t know if that’s really how it works. So to answer your question, if they give you May 25 as the deadline and your wedding date is June 25, you have to go to Hong Kong on or before May 25 and on the wedding date itself (June 25) meaning you have to come to HK twice. This example is only for the sake of arguement because I have no idea if they really give deadlines that are far from the wedding date itself since I have not experienced such. I hope this helps. Cheers!

hi..your blog is really helpful..i am now preparing our papers and want to ask if the other papers are needed like statutory declaration if you are still single and consent of minor if you are not.can i skip those papers or i still need to pass them even?.sorry my question maybe silly but i just want to give full papers in one time

I was not a minor when I got married so I definitely didn’t include the requirements that were meant for minors. Just submit the requirements that are applicable to your status. If the particular entry on the form doesn’t apply to you, then just put NA. (e.i. Chinese Name). I suggest you keep reading the instructions so you’ll have a better understanding. Glad to help out. :)

thanks so much for the fassssssssssst reply…last question if you may..there are two forms right?the other one has already place where you will sign (notice of intended marriage) but the other form there’s no place and the attorney is asking where will i sign becuse you need to sign so they will notarized it right?where can i sign in information required for registration?thanks again for your time

I have no idea why the attorney you went to was even asking that. In my case, I just went to the notary and the lawyer knew what to do. I had all my papers notarized even the photocopy of our passports. That sounds strange if the lawyer didn’t even know what to do. Read the forms and your questions will be answered.

Hi. Your blog is a very helpful starting point for me and my wife. Here’s my issue: My wife and I were married last year in the Philippines. She’s a Filipina while I am currently dual citizen Japanese and Filipino. Our Philippine marriage contract indicates “Filipino” for both me and my wife’s citizenship. I am wondering if I can get married again to my wife this year in Hong Kong but now indicate my Japanese citizenship and present supporting documents (Japan passport, etc) so that the Hong Kong marriage contract/certificate shall indicate Japanese (me) and Filipino (wife) as our citizenship? I am planning to do this for the purpose of complying with registering my marriage to Japan Embassy without them making an issue out of my dual citizenship (Because they dont allow dual citizenship).

1. In the Registration of Marriage Form:
1a) should I still state that I am previously married even if both of us are still marrying each other again & have never been divorced/separated/widowed?
1b) Can we just indicate we’re both single to avoid complications from possible required documents from us (Philippine marriage contract indicating my Filipino citizenship)? OR Should I just indicate that we’re both currently married to each other?
1c) What are the documents that will be required from us should we declare that we are currently married to each other?

2. On the Notice for Intended Marriage form:
2a). Do we have to also fill up the fields/sections for Chinese names or completing the English names is enough?
2b). Do we complete all Statutory Declaration forms (both English & Chinese forms or will completing the English form be enough?)
2c) For each applicable statutory declaration form, should each bride & groom complete their own appropriate Statutory Declaration form (1 filled out by the bride and 1 filled the by the groom)?
2d) In Statutory Declaration #1, do we still have to complete and notarize this even we’ve never experienced divorce? or fill the applicable fields and just leave those fields pertaining to previously divorced marriage blank?
2e) In Statutory Declaraton #2 & #3, do we still have to complete and notarize this even if we have no children yet? or fill the applicable fields and just leave those fields pertaining to children/offspring blank?

Thank you so much for making time to answer all these queries of mine. My wife and I are lost at how I should handle this citizenship concern of mine in line with reporting our marriage to the Japan Embassy. We are looking forward to your inputs on how we may answer these latest challenge of ours. God Bless! :)

Sorry for the late reply. Maybe you should follow the usual process of getting married for singles since other categories don’t apply to both of you. The only thing I’m concern is if you’ll have 2 marriage certificates at the end of the day. I hope it won’t be a problem when she applies for spouse visa since the first and the will be second marriage are with the same person. It’s better if you email the HK gov’t and verify if you should follow the requirements for singles. If they are okay with that then I think your problem is solved. Just put NA on entries that are not applicable. Please read my previous comments. They are pretty much complete and can guide you with the whole process.

*****I am pleased to inform you that your marriage notice has been
exhibited on 29 January 2013 and an appointment at City Hall
Marriage Registry at 3:30 p.m. on 21 March 2013 (Thursday) has
been reserved for you.

Both of the marrying parties, please come together to our office at
3/F, Low Block, Queensway Government Offices, 66 Queensway, Hong
Kong (counter 20) ON or BEFORE 19 March 2013********

We already received the confirmation from Hk . But , we had another problem , because my bf from germany arrived here in manila in march 19 in the afternoon . This only the available date of fligth and most are already fully book . This are the problem , because march 19 is our appointment at Government office to appear there before our marriage n march 21 .
My question is , can I go there alone in the morning in hong kong government for my appearance , because my fiance arrived in manila in the afternoon and he go to hong kong in the evening . OR We have to change our date of marriage to March 22 to appear there together .

This are very complicated now . I dont know if its ok to hong kong if they allow one of the marrying parties and not both to appear there for the formalities .
What should I do now . My fiance are already book his fligth and arrived here to the date of our appointment in govt of HK . Can I ask if they allowed our both appearance in March 20 and not March 19 . And our marriage date is March 21 .
I dont know what to do or I should write an email to hong kong Govt office .
I hope you have an idea . And help me again . Thank you and godbless ..

Sorry for the late reply. You better e-mail the gov’t office and inform them your situation. One thing I’m sure of is you have to observe their deadline because the scheduled wedding date will not push through if you don’t appear together on or before the date stated. You are getting married so coming there alone doesn’t make sense and they have to see the original passports to verify.

When I originally commented I clicked the “Notify me when new comments are added” checkbox and now each time a comment is added I get four emails with the same comment. Is there any way you can remove me from that service? Cheers!

Hi, dear! Thank you for this information. I’ve been dying to find something that is similar to my case. ><
I'm living in Indonesia, and an Indonesian citizen whilst my fiance is a British citizen. we both are over 21 years old.

I'm just wondering if I and my fiance will be able to get married somewhere around April if we process the papers now? he will be having his holiday in my country for 3 weeks (starting from march 29th).. thanks in advance <3

Hi! I suggest that you submit all the requirements and specify the exact date you want. You have to also remember that it’s subject to availability. I didn’t experience choosing the date I wanted. Please read my previous comments so you’ll have an idea on the process and how long it took.

We submitted our papers feb 13 and our intended date of marriage is april 3 or 8. But up to this date we havent received any response from them. Is there a possibility that we wont receive our license to wed. Thanks

You should send them an email and ask an update regarding your application. They answer emails. They actually email you once they have received the documents. That’s based on my experience. Check my comments below to see how fast they answer.

I’ve read all your comments. Esp.about the dates of your papers & how fast they reply. Thats why i am basing all my dates with yours. And im getting a bit worried coz we didnt receive even an email from them that they received our papers. Can you give me their email ad so we can follow up our papers? Thanks.

Hi , we are getting married this coming 3/21/13 , everything is all right now .
But my one witness is my auntie in Hong kong and she write me , that her passport are still in process . Is it ok if she bring Hong kong I.D and her working contract in Hong kong . She work there for almost 5 years .

Follow what is specified. If what is specified is passport, then it should be passport. My witnesses were both HK Residents but the still brought both their passports and their HK IDS. Just tell your aunt to refer anyone she knows that has a passport to be your witness in case that’s not possible. Just to remind you, you need to have 2 witnesses.

Thanks po for your reply . I will inform immediately my auntie .
Maybe she will try to find another witness for my marriage .
Mam , I would like to ask because my fiance already reserved our hostel . It is at Kowloon new hostel located at tsim sha tsui and our marriage ceremony are located at City hall central . What is the public transportation na pwede sakyan directly to City hall central . Is it good to take a train or bus . And what station .

I am more comfortable riding the subway in any country. Just ride the subway. Ride along the red line (Tsuen Wan Line) Tsim Sha Tsui Station to Central Station . The travel time is just about 6 minutes. Exit K for Marriage Registry- City Hall.

Hi its me again. I just like to ask if they will only email the primary contact person about the progress of our papers? And is the date that your papers are exhibited the same date that they will email you? Thanks

Please read my previous comments as I mentioned before. All your questions about the time table of processing were already asked previously. If I remember correctly that was in my comment with Stefanie. Please read everything in my comments because they are really helpful. I don’t know if they only contact the primary contact person but that is most likely how it goes because you indicated it there. In my case, I made it sure that I’m in charge if everything.

Thank you , its really help for me this all information . I’m thinking now , if we arrived at the airport and ride via Airport express going to Hong kong central station . it is the Queensway city government are not close to the central station and we have to take a taxi when we arrived at central station and the taxi going to Queensway gov’t office . How long the city gov’t to central station . Thanks again .

If you have a lot of money and spending is not an issue just ride a cab and the taxi driver can bring you wherever you want to go. I never ride taxi when it was just me and my husband so I can’t help you with that. What I can say is from Queensway Government Offices you can just walk to Admiralty Station (3 mins) that’s along Tsuen Wan Line Subway towards Central Station (2 mins, 1 stop). Please check google maps if you have questions about routes and distances.

About my other question. There’s a tick box in the application form about the primary contact person (bride,bridegroom, others). Are they only going to email the one that we chose say for example bridegroom? Or if i email them they will respond too?

Please refer to my previous comments. Instead of asking me if they will respond if you will email them, just email them so you will know the answer. Whoever is the primary contact person should not matter because you put that person there for a reason. It makes me think that either you have difficulty understanding the procedure or you are the one making the procedure complicated for you. Ask someone else to read my previous comments and have it explained to you if you think my comments are difficult to understand for you. How I explain things are already too simple and if you still don’t get it then ask someone else to help you out so they can explain how they understand it. I’m saying this because I don’t want you to have a hard time later on because the procedure is very easy. I also don’t want you to waste your time and money just because you dont understand the procedure even if I am already providing all the info about my experience. I hope you understand what I mean.

hello,good day to you i read all comments and this are very usefull,mine question is after our marriage, my german fiancee also will go to thier embassy in hongkong and can submit the marriage certificate?or is it onlyme who will do this?

Hello, Im so happy when found out your posts.
Im Vietnamese and my fiance is French. We also think about getting married in HK cuz its easy. Maybe on May.
But I have a small question that I can book Giving of notice of Intending Marriage when im not in HK and just go to HK on that date? or I have to book it when Im in HK n wait 15days afterwards at there?
And for sure that we dont any documents else like Single certificate?
Thanks a lot! Have a nice day!

I went to HK just few days before the actual wedding date which means I filed and sent all the papers outside HK. Just provide all the requirements they ask. Dont make it complicated by giving something that is not even included in the requirement. Please read this blog and the comments over and over again, if it’s still not clear, so you will be guided well. Cheers!

Hi! Good Day! Thank you for sharing this blog to everyone. I followed all the steps and Hongkong Government reserved May 14, 2013 as our wedding date. This site is very helpful and made everything easier. I am lucky because I know a lawyer and didn’t charge big amount on notary. I think it will be better if you will look for a lawyer that you know personally so you can save some money. I also recommend DHL as courier, usually the other couriers will not accept your package if there is a bank draft.

Again, thank you for all the information this had been my guide since I started preparing all our documents. Have a great day!;) ♥

Hi Ness, thanks for you kind words and tips for other readers. I used the regular EMS for my document to HK and it was just fine. But it’s definitely true that DHL or FedEx are a lot safer when sending very important documents. I’m glad this blog helped you with the process. Best wishes to your wedding.

Hi … I would like to ask if my Filipino bf & I can get married in Hong Kong? I am Filipino , but I am a US citizen now. My boyfriend who is based in Manila is single. My ex husband (Filipino) & I have lived in the states for almost 15 yrs now & unfortunately we got divorced . We got married in the Philippines 1988. Do you think it’s valid if I get married in Hong Kong with my Filipino boyfriend since I’m divorced in the states and a US citizen already? That way after the marriage, my soon to be hubby can already get a visa as married to a US citizen, & not as fiancé visa which takes long time…

I was completely single before I got married. Right after the marriage we went to the Philippine Embassy but they were about to close so they said we could report the marriage in DFA in the Philippines so that’s what we did. But we were able to report the marriage in Korean Embassy in HK. But I suggest reporting the marriage in Phililppine Embassy in HK than in DFA.

Jeanet, your questions can all be answered if you read the instructions and procedures carefully. If you missed even this part, you should read it again or let someone near you expain it for you to avoid mistakes.

Hi just came back in the Philippines from Hongkong. We got married finally! :) I would like to give additional information if you will register your marriage in Philippine Embassy in Hongkong you need to have original copies and 3 or 4 photocopies (not so sure) of your NSO birth certificate, passport and marriage contract. Just to make the process easier and faster. The staff of the Embassy are nice and accommodating.
Goodluck everyone and have a great day! :)

Hi Ness! My fiance and I are getting married in HK next month. Im wondering about the requirements to pass to the Philippine embassy to report our marriage. I checked the website of ph embassy in hk and they said Filipinos need to also pass CENOMAR or certificate of no marriage. Im so confused so just wanted to clarify things with people who already did it. Please help! Thanks!

Hi im thinking of also gettin married in hk with a british citizen since the Philippines has lots of requirements and fiance is so busy. My question here is are we required to register my marriage to embassy philippines? Cause i thought hk will give us marriage certfcate already once married there? Can i use that certificate from hk as my marriage contract if i will also apply for spouse visa to the UK?

Yes, you must report your marriage at your respective embassies even if you get a martiage certificate issued in Hong Kong. It’s your responsibility to report that such activity happened so it can be updated. That’s just a normal procedure. As far as I know, with documents with visa application the always ask for marriage certificate issued by your home country so your marriage abroad must always be reported to your respective embassies to follow the correct procedure.

Hi i want to ask about our plan to get married in hongkong, is it possible to do the authentication of notary public to the embassy here becoz right now im working here in israel and my fiancee live in switzerland,, all the documents to be send are ready but im not sure where can i go to the the notary public,, thanks alot and im waiting ur response:)

Hi, I think it’s possible. I can’t say for sure because I haven’t tried that. Please try to read again the requirements because they have instructions there. In my opinion, notary in the Philippine Embassy is like having the paper notarized in the Philippines. So, it should work. I hope everything goes well.

Hi, Thank you very much for this blog as my fiance and I are having a hard time about choosing between fiancee visa or spouse visa in going to UK. When it is spouse visa, CNI is such a pain because my fiance cannot go off from his work 7 days or more and CNI will just be released 21 days after and marriage license will be ten days or more.

I am a filipina and he is a british. I just wanna ask a few questions.

Last year, I booked a roundtrip ticket to hongkong just for 3 days and 4 nights, that would be November 18 to 21. I am still thinking if this marrying in HK could be an option for our problem.

Can you please tell me when is the best date to fill out the forms, send it and have a wedding date exactly within my stay in Hongkong? And also I am confused about the HK ID in the form :(

Hi Jennifer A.
I can’t tell you the best date because I let them choose the available day for me and I booked my ticket right after they provided me with the available date. HK I.D. is for H.K. resident of course if you are not a HK resident you don’t have to provide that.

Good day to all! My fiancé and I we’re getting married in Hong Kong at Cotton Tree Registry on the 18th of July. We don’t know anyone in Hong Kong for witnesses. Is there any same scenario like mine who doesn’t have witnesses, is it possible to ask a stranger in Hong Kong? or any possible “referrals”? Supposedly my 2 friends are the target witnesses but they changed their travel plans. Any help or advice will be much appreciated. Cheers!

Hi Anne, you can grab anyone as witnesses as long as they are of age and with travel documents. If you are Filipino, there are a lot of Filipinos out there. But you need to find ahead of time because you have to consider that they also have job. Congratulations!

Here is my situation by the way, I am Naturalized Canadian since 2006, I was married in the Philippines, got divorced in Oct 2011 here in Ontario Canada, I have a Boyfriend in the Philippines and we have an ongoing relationship for almost 4 years now, we are planning to get married in Hongkong this September, and as I was reading your post regarding forwarding the Marriage Certificate to Phil Embassy COnsulate in HK, I just thought will we have any problem if ever we get married and forward our Hongkong Marriage CErtificate to NSO if my future husband asks for an NSO COpy & AOM? do you think my previous marriage will still appear? Does the HK Marriage Certificate looks exactly the same as the original HK MCertficate but just in an NSO Secured Paper? will the Phil Law still apply to me since I am Already a Canadian Citizen? What do you think will happen if we report our marriage and find out I am still married there, I am Canadian now, so probably they won’t bother, what do you think? please help !

Thanks again for giving us insights and step by step guide in your blog, you are amazing! God Bless :)

If you are already a Canadian, you are no longer covered by Philippine Law. I can’t answer legality question because I have not experienced such and I’m not a lawyer so I will answer only on things that I’m familiar. If you marry in a different country and you are a Filipino, they ask you to fill up a form and in turn that will be your NSO copy of the marriage done abroad. The color of the paper is the same as those papers you get in NSO when you get birth certicate. If you are Canadian citizen then just report it to Canadian Embassy. Your concern should be if the person you are about to be married with is Filipino. I’m just worried that your previous marriage status might create a problem later on when you try to petition him/her. If you want to ask legal questions, I used to listen to this radio program on the website wwwinteraksyon.com every 1:00 PM (Philippine Time) The name of the program is RELASYON. They answer legal questions there. ^^ Give it a try.

thanks for your reply ! I know the Philippine Law will not apply to anymore as am a Canadian Citizen and my ex husband is Canadian also and does not live in the Philippines ( i don’t even know where he is LOL :P)
We will be getting married in Sept. and we’ll report our marriage in Phil. Embassy. As for sponsorship, Canadian embassy will ask for Advisory on marriages for sure as one of the requirements for the issuance of Visa, but do you know how long it takes for authentication of documents such as the Hong Kong Marriage Certificate takes in Philippine Embassy? We will only be in HK for few days, we might as well make authenticated copies in case CFO Manila and Canadian Embassy asks for it, right? :)

As far as I know, you can get it on the same day if you gave it before lunch time. But I can’t be very sure because we asked someone else to do it because the Philippine Embassy was already closed at that time. But we waited for just few minutes at the Korean Embassy. Authentication and report of marriage must be done on your respective embassies for the purpose of recording and for filing of your documents.

hi i am a filipina and im in the philippines right now, im in the process of preparing the requirements to sent and just trying to fill up the forms since i just got my fiance’s papers from the US .i would just like to ask some help from filling up the form im just confused regarding the part where they asked for your marital status but under the part of the bride it shows different options such as divorced,spinster or widow but there is no such thing as bachelorette or single which is what i am,so what should i do should i just skip that part or should i right there my status? and also can i just sent US DOLLARS equal tp the 305HK$ fee since i dont kNow how to do the bank draft thing,ive been following your blog to help us planning our wedding in hongkong its been very helpful,hope u could reply soon and thank u very much :)

Very informative blog! Thanks for sharing this information as well. We are planning to tie-the-knot as well in Hong Kong and I must say most of the information I got are from your post. However, I just have a small doubt, you said all the statutory documents do not apply to you and so with me, does it mean you only submitted the first 2 pages of the “Notice of Intended Marriage” form because this is what I am actually thinking to send only but quite unsure. Hope you can help further.

Hi Lourdes, don’t get confused. If you read it carefully, Statutory Declaration is meant for someone who was married to someone else previously. What will you put in the details there if you weren’t married previously? Read all the papers because all the information they ask makes perfect sense. Cheers!

Hi This is quite helpful but i still have few questions..
My bf is an american he lives in new jersey. i am a single mom, Filipina worker here in manila. Wehave always wanted to get married so he can get me there.. Weve been together for a year now. I used to have an aunt who get married with a Bristish in HOngkong and it makes it easier for them to get her to UK. WEll i was thinking because hongkong is under british colony that is why. But we dont want too much long waits that is actually always been a problem in manila if you get married here. Is it possible for us to get married in Hongkong even we arent both residents in there? And do you happen to know if it will take us more chances of not waiting too much time for us to have the spouse visa from the usa. I could have choosen fiancee visa but i cant leave my son alone and he do not want it either..
Thank you so much

hi i have another concern hope you can help me with this,i am really worried with my trip to hongkong i am 23 years old and i have no work at this time yet and my fiance is an american and his supporting me and so with the travelling to hongkong for our wedding im worried because this my first travel outside the country and i may be denied in the immigration, i was reading a guidelines in thE bureau of immigration when your about to depart the country already it says their that any partner or spouse of a foreign national whose going to meet or marry his or her fiance should show a CFO GUIDELINES AND COUNSELLING CERTIFICATE TO THE IMMIGRATION,so i wonder if they asked you about it when you leave the philippines before to marry your fiance in hongkong,and did they ask you whats your purpose of travel and did you answered them that your to marry your fiance in hongkong?please help me

Hi, I just want to ask your advise regarding our case, We are both Filipino Citizen and planning to get married in HK.I am currently residing in United Arab Emirates and my fiance was a dual Citizenship ( Canadian and Philippine ) residing in Alberta, Canada but he is divorced but no previous marriage in the Philippines the only thing was that when the time he got married in Canada he was still a Filipino Citizen, but now he filed an annulment because his lawyer advise him it is better to file an annulment because there is still a jurisdiction of the Phil.Govt.,2 weeks ago we received a good news the the judgement of the Annulment is already done but we still need to wait the Certificate of Finality but we dont know when it will be issued.Since we want to marry soon, can we marry in HK?Please help…Thank’s

Hi, im michelle. Me and my fiance are planning to get married in HK on feb 2014. I already knw about the formsetc. My problem now is the bank draft. There is no accreditate bank here in KSA to hk. What should i do.??

Hello there! your blog is really helpful and Im glad you have such patience to answer all our queries. my concern is the witnesses we dont know anybody from HK, kindly help us with this. tnx much! GODBLESS!

Hi Dulce, try to look for a Filipinos store selling food anywhere there. Be friendly and ask if they know anybody who is nice enough to be your witnesses. Treat you witnesses a nice meal together with you on or before the ceremony. Just be mindful that they need to have passport and must be of legal age. There are a lot of Filipinos in HK esp. around MTR Central Station where Jollibee is located.

Good day, I am biased about this because I haven’t tried doing it by civil celebrant. I believe marriage registry is cheapest because you don’t need to pay extra. I think you still need to pay the same thing plus additional for the civil celebrant and the rate for the location where it will be held varies.

hi, i am based in Taiwan (Pinoy) and my future wife as well (Ukrainian). We want to get married in HK. Do we need Certificate of Freedom to Marry? etc like in Philippines? Should we report it in Philippine Consular office in HK or we can do it here in Taipei? We are planning to get married in the Russian Orthodox Church in HK

Hi Julian, as you know my situation is not the same as yours. But I believe the notarization on your respective consular office in you current location is as good as notarizing in your own country since those are offices of your countries abroad. As for the requirements, just stick to what they are asking and don’t put documents that are not asked. It’s better to report the marriage in the consular offices of your respective countries in Hong Kong because it needs to be authenticated, too.

hello and good day. Nice blog you got here, very helpful. But i just want to ask if my fiance (who is German) and I get married in Hongkong, will the German embassy in honkong honor it? would it be legally registered in their civil registry too in germany? Since marrying a foreigner here in the philippines is very difficult and tedious, we decided to get married in HK so I just want to ask if the marriage will be honored in germany. Thank you so much :)

Hi Ching, thanks for your kind words. Your concern is regarding the legality of marriage in HK in relation with Germany. I can only answer you based on what I read on the German Consulate website. It says, “The basic rule is that a marriage entered into abroad will be regarded as valid in Germany if the legal provisions relating to marriage of that foreign state were abided by. In addition both the bride and groom must meet all legal capacity requirements for marriage under the law of their home states (they must for example be single, over a minimum age and not too closely related to one another).” Here is the website for you to check with your fiance. http://www.auswaertiges-amt.de/EN/Laenderinformationen/01-Laender/Konsularisches/Eheschliessung_node.html I hope this helps.

Hi, Me and my fiancee are planning to get married in HK, we are both single but we are located in separate countries right now. But he will travel to HK to process something and we think this would be also the right time to submit the docs we need for marrying. Please help me what are the docs he really needs to bring for submission sice he will stay in HK for one day. I hope you could help us about this. He will travel to HK next week. Please give us all the details about the papers he needs to prepare and if it’s still needed for him to wait few hours after submitting it? How about u said notarized docs? Where will he notarize it? Do he need to go to philippine consulate in HK or just a lawyer? Thank u

Hi, everything you asked are provided on the HK gov’t website and the documents that are needed to be notarized are also mentioned there. If you print the forms on the HK gov’t website, there’s also a not there on what paper is needed to be notarized. If you find it confusing, try reading all the helpful comments on this page because I have mentioned them a lot of times. Take time to read all of it. If it’s still difficult to follow, maybe you should ask someone else to read it for you and have it explained. Thank you.

Hi Hazel,
thank you so much for all this information and your valuable hints.
I’m from germany and i currenty prepare my documents for the marriage regsitry in hk. My spouse is a 30yo filipina who was never married before, so we dont expect any problems.
We are planning our time schedule now. We arrive in hk sunday and plan to leave the next saturday. Since we wanna have enough time for registering or marriage cretificate afterwards, we plan for the ceremony at tuesday. Means we have to show up at the marriage resitration office in monday.
Is it ok and smart to do so, or do we need 2 n more days between the initial show up at the marriage registration and the actual ceremony day?
Thank you very much for your help.
Germain

Hi Germain,
I believe there won’t be any problem if you show up the day before the actual ceremony for showing your passports and getting the receipt of the bank draft as long it will not go beyond the due date. But I have to remind you to be mindful of the due date they will specify on the email. You must observe the due date of you showing up before the actual ceremony on the registry.

Hi Hazel,
thank you very much for your quick answer. But i dont get what you mean about that due date you mention. Sorry my eglish is fine but not perfect. Is it about the 15 days pediod or the 3 month limit? Or is it about anything im not aware of by now? Could you explain more detailed please?
Thank you and god bless..
Germain

Germain, once they have received all the required documents they will send you an email stating the date of your ceremony and the due date of your appearance for showing your travel documents and the receipt of the bank draft will also be given to you there. I didn’t pick the date of my ceremony. I let them decide for it so the due date in my case is close to the actual ceremony date. Please check all the comments because your questions have been asked previously and I have answered those questions in detail. Take time in reading all previous comments because they are helpful.

Hi! Just have some questions.
1. Are those listed things to prepare are the one I should send as Notice of Intended marriage. That is the first step, right?
2. Can I scanned all the documents and can this be send through email?

Im going to HK on first week of December with my fiance and planned to marry there. Based on your comments above, I believe I have to process this as quick as possible for the availability of the date.

Yes, those are the things you need to prepare. Please check the exact details on the HK gov’t website since this blog is just a guide. I didn’t send my documents thru email because it was not part of the instruction when I did mine last 2011. Please refer to the HK gov’t website. Thanks.

hi i have a question about the two formula notarized bec. we are planning to marry in hongkong. it is both me and my fiancee can send the formula or its ok my fiancee can send only the two formula notarized?

Hi, I’m don’t exactly get what you’re trying to say about “formula” but everything you need to submit is on the HK gov’t website. Just print all the forms and read carefully. You’ll know what to do because it’s stated there. If you still have a hard time, ask someone else to read or find it for you on the paper or on the website because it’s written there. Have a great day.

hi.i was married to an american citizen last 2006.we got a civil wedding here in the phils.later of 2007 he petitioned me to US, and later he filed a divorce there ( a complicated reason) and was approved i think 2 years ago. i dont have a copy yet of that approved divorce. now i have someone who wants to marry me and we planned to do it there in HK. bcoz i thought it might encounter a problem if we will do it here in phils. would it be possible and would there be any problem in the future that we might get encountered with?

Hi, I’m not a lawyer so I can’t advise you legally regarding the outcome of such decisions you’ll be making. What I can say is your divorce paper is still needed in Hong Kong if you want to marry there. Check this link for special requirement for divorced person: http://www.gov.hk/en/residents/immigration/bdmreg/marriage/marreg/givingnotice/supportdocuments.htm I don’t know the nationality of the person you are thinking of marrying but if the person is Filipino be mindful with the process esp. if you are thinking of petitioning that person. You just have to have the right papers because you have to authenticate and report it in your respective embassies. With that mentioned, NSO will put that on record too. I believe it goes for any nationality. You need to have the right papers so that later on it won’t create problems. I highly suggest that you fix all your papers first as far as your marital status is concerned.

I was reading your information with interest my partner (filipina) and I (UK Citizen) have been together 10 years now and want to marry we are based in the Philippines but have looked and the process seems as you indicate so difficult and also expensive we spend Christmas every year in HK with my daughter from my previous marriage I am divorced , what documents will my partner need and also myself to process things in HK as per your experience ? I have my divorce papers and we have our passports. does she need a certificate of singleness? Any information you can provide would be really helpful as we know we need t move fast if we are to make it this year many thanks :-)

Hi Hazel! I just want ask you about the requirements you passed when you report your marriage to the philippine consulate. Did you also pass a CENOMAR or certificate of no marriage? My fiance and I are getting married in HK next month and Im wondering if I really need to get one here before I go to hong kong. Cuz I heard its better if you report your marriage in person. Please reply! thanks!

hi im charlotte, my bf and i are filipino. he works in the middle east but will be coming home by december for a 1 month vacation. we are planning to apply for residency in canada as couple so we’d like to get married and get a marriage certificate fast. if we are to marry in HK, how long can we have the marriage certificate? we dont want to get married in PH and go through a very expensive ceremony. please help enlighten about the process, tnx

Hi there! thank you so much for this very useful information!. I’m Filipino and getting married to a British next year but going through all the procedures in the Philippines is almost impossible. After reading this,we’ve decided to go to Hongkong. My only worry is, can we register our wedding certificate in the Philippines ? cause we need to fly there immediately for the church wedding?or can we register it in Dubai embassy cause we’re gonna live there..or is it really necessary to register only in our Embassy in Hongkong? I really appreciate your help.

Sorry for the late reply. I can only speak based on my experience. It is necessary to report your marriage in your respective embassies so that you’ll have a record in your country. The country in which you are a citizen.

hi i would like to inform all my friends how to get a problem solved read my story now so as to know how my wife decieved the nso on her previous marriage on 1993 i got married in saudi arabia to a filipina muslim women i was not completely aware of her as she was married already in the philippine to anopther man before marrying me in saudi i learnt it only when my daughter was born it tore me apart but i had to stick to her cxoz of my only daughter she had a birth name and she converte3d her religion to muslim before marrying me and now presently iam residing alone in the philippines based on that marriage to her when i approached the NSO office can you beleive i received my marriage contract form the NSO question mark why her previous marriage didnt appear on the list of the NSO coz i beleive her previous name has another file and her muslim name had another file coz when i approached the nso for the muslim name birth certificate they found no records pero on the old name i found her birth certificate. it solves a lot of explanation that she married me wiyth a different name at a foreign land and consulate office updated my marriage to the dfa in manila its important for every female who has marital problems and who wanna get married again. feel free to stay in touch via email.thanks and god bless us all

Your entire post, “Getting Married in Hong Kong for Foreigners | Mangoes and Pears” was in fact well worth commenting down here in the comment section!
Simply just desired to mention you really did a very good job.

Hi, just a quick question: after I get my marriage certificate, I have to go to the Philippine embassy. I submit my papers to them and in turn, do I have to pick anything up afterwards? If I married in the morning, is it possible to go home in the afternoon? oh btw, did they need the CENOMAR? Thanks!

I had my CENOMAR with me just in case but they didn’t ask for it back then. I went to Philippine Embassy right after the ceremony but they were closed. Please read the my previous comments. I mentioned it there.

Great job Mangoes and pears! Your blog has been very very helpful. My fiance and I are planning to get married in Hong Kong this year, thanks to your blog (initially we were considering thailand) I’d like to ask if it’s mandatory to immediately submit your marriage certificate to the Philippine Embassy after the wedding or can we do it when we get back. If in the Philippines where do we submit our marriage certificate? You see my fiance and i want to maximize our time in Hong Kong as we are planning to go there for 3 days and 2 nights only due to budget constraints. Since we’re there already, we’d also like to enjoy Hong Kong. Besides, we were thinking, going to the embassy might eat up a lot of our time. Do you think it’s possible to just register when we get home? Your reply would be highly appreciated. Thanks in advance.

Yes, you must report your marriage to your respective embassies in HK. If you know someone in HK who can do it on your behalf, that would be good. Please read my previous comments because I have mentioned what I did previously there. Cheers!

Hi, me and my fiancee wants to get married in HK.. he is a muslim man with first wife and I am christian.. can this be marriage possible in HK or u may suggest a few countries to consider. I can convert to muslim. But the question is one of the requirements need his first wife written consent? We have all the papers only this consent if needed and also if I need to be converted, kindly share your advice. Can we get witnesses in HK or need to be our relative? Maria

I say 2 days before the wedding, as you have to report to the marriage registry, Our wedding is September 25, 2013, and we are required to show up in the registry on the 23rd of September, anyway they will let you know in the confirmation letter, when, where to show up in the registry and the time and place of the wedding :) hope this helps

hi i am so glad to read all those information….but still im very confused since we are planning to get married in hk this year if we can sort out those documents were needed…my fiancee is croatian so we prefer to get married in hk since papers will be recognize both parties and im a filipina and working in dubai so i need more info how we will be going to start….badly need our advice …thankz very much!

I can’t give you more than the advice I have provided on this blog. I suggest you keep on reading the instructions on the HK govt website and all the comments for this particular blog post. If you still have doubts if you can make it work even after reading everything, maybe you should not push on it. I got married in HK because that’s what I wanted from the start. I carefully planned and read all the instructions and I knew I could make it happen. What works for me may not work for others. So it’s just a matter of choice. Good luck on whatever you choose. After all, it’s your wedding. Cheers!

hi there! i just want to ask if marriage in hk needs CERTIFiCATE OF LEGAL CAPACITY TO CONTRACT MARRIAGE? my papers are done except this, we plan to get married in croatia if not possible in hk but because of this certificate which is very complicated to get because theres no phil emabssy in croatia so we will try to move back to get married in hk if doesnt need this certificate…thankz for your reply sis! GODBLESS!

Hi. I don’t remember them asking or me giving this document when I got married in 2011. But I had a copy of my Certificate of No Mariage from NSO (CENOMAR) with me then in case they asked. It’s better if you check the HK gov`t website if they ask for that.

Thanks for this very helpful blog. I am a Filipina and currently working in Bangkok. My Fiance is a German citizen and he lives in Germany. We decided to register our marriage in Hong Kong on May or June (waiting for the confirmation from HK marriage registry). Then we have to report our marriage to our respective embassies. To process my family reunion visa, shall i send my application to German embassy in Hong Kong, in Bangkok or in Philippines?

Hi, tis. I have not experienced getting a family reunion visa but as far as I know when someone is applying for any visa you can do that in the country where you are currently residing. I can be wrong so I suggest you inquire at the German Embassy in Bangkok about their requirements. Just comply for whatever requirements they ask you. If you can get it there in Thailand much better. It’s a different story if you will be going to Germany from the Philippines because you have to go through the CFO seminar and you can’t leave the airport if you don’t any sticker coming from them even if you already have a visa from the German Embassy. I think you better be sure that your marriage cert. in Hong Kong already has an NSO copy as well as the counter part in Germany because I believe that is part of the requirements for family reunion visa. I hope everything goes smoothly.

Finally, we got married last 4 June at Cotton Tree Marriage Registry. Please note if you are marrying a German National, make sure to observe the Apostille in HK. We brought our original marriage certificate to the Apostille service at HK High Court (2 working days to get it back). Once you have the apostillised document, your marriage in HK is honored in Germany.

Hi, I started again to follow up this blog since my fiancee posted here under the name of Mynah.
I’m German too and I can tell and unfortunately promise you that the way for the reunion will be not that easy like the marriage. As far as I know, and by the way, it is the only reasonable way which I see, you have to deal with the German embassy in your country of Origin. All this application is related with schengen visa , and this is very strict. I also need to advice you to make a course about German language. It is required that you are able to understand and spell most simple sentence about your person and your information given by your ID in German language. I suggest you to contact Goethe institute in Manila or even in Bangkok, they offer special courses just for this purpose. I wish you more luck then we got on our way. Both of us are down and struggling in understanding this situation.
TODAY IS MY WEDDING DAY !!!
But I’m still alone in Hong Kong…. It’s so frustrating…
But this should be a reminder to all other readers here who want to marry in HK to be careful in their preparation and also by talking at the immigration. With more money in the pocket, the hotel reservation and online ticket for Disneyland…. It may have be not happen like now…

Thanks for sharing your thoughts and giving advice to other readers of this blog. As I always say, planning is everything. Just charge everything to experience so you can move on fast from the unfortunate incident and plan again for your wedding. I sincerely wish you and Mynah all the best and stay positive. Cheers!

Thanks for your advice and all the best . I have already registered for A1 courses at Goethe BKK. I have also contacted the German embassy in Bangkok and they confirm that I can send my spousal visa application to them. Btw, I have just received a confirmation email from HK marriage registry with our day of marriage 4th June. Does anyone knows how quick to get to Queensway from the airport?

When I was there in HK, I got by with just riding the subway. Queensway, if I’m not mistaken, is located at Admiralty Station. From the airport to there, the shortest traveling time is ~36mins. There’s an app on Playstore called MTR TOURIST. I think that can be helpful to you.

Hi!
From the moment we (me and my fiance) read this blog, we planned to do the same like you did…to marry in HongKong. We were thrilled about it because it seemed easy but it wasn’t as easy as what I expected.
I am a Filipina and my fiance is German. He paid me a surprise visit two days before the changing of the year 2013 to 2014 and since he was here with me in Philippines, we arranged everything for the wedding. We followed the procedures which we learned from your blog and it seemed that everything was okay but not until I got to the airport yesterday. I didn’t able to fly to Hongkong because I was offloaded by the Immigration Officers because they were looking for CFO certificate as told them my purpose of travel is to get married. I didn’t know I needed that certificate. I went to the CFO office today but there was no more slots and they were scheduling for the counseling for me tomorrow but I needed to be there in Hongkong because I needed to appear at the registry with my fiance. My wedding day will be on this week, March 14, 2014. I can’t help crying because I don’t know what to do. My fiance is waiting for me in Hongkong….

It’s very sad to hear that you having difficulty. When we went to Hong Kong to get married, I was not asked what I’ll do there and if ever they did ask me I would just say to look around. I wouldn’t say the details because I would not want to give them any reason to not let me leave the airport. I always believe that my business is my own as long as I have the right papers.CFO Certificate is needed for Filipinos who married foreigners and want to leave the Philippines to live in the country of their spouses. I got my CFO certificate when I’m processing my spouse visa for Korea and that was almost a year afterI got married in Hong Kong. I don’t get it why they didn’t let you leave the airport if you’re not even married to your fiancé but of course you can’t question the immigration officers. This is the reason why I said if ever they did ask me I would just say I’ll just go for vacation. Maybe you can try to leave again for Hong Kong anyway vacation is also part of it. This time when they ask tell them you’re there to look around. I hope you can you get through this difficulty. Check the following links:http://www.cfo.gov.ph/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1348:fiancee-spouses-and-other-partners-of-foreign-nationals&catid=140http://thewander-woman.com/cfo-seminar-for-filipinos-fiancees-or-spouses-of-foreign-nationals/

I didn’t expect I would received a reply as quick as this. Thanks a lot. Btw, It’s hopeless now. Tomorrow is my wedding and I can’t be there. My witnesses though just arrived in Hongkong airport right now and it’s ironic that the witnesses are there but the bride won’t be there on her wedding day.
I did everything but it didn’t work. When I was asking for refund from the airline, one ticketing staff gave me a tip that it’s not strict in Clark Airport so I booked another ticket bound from that airport but it’s no use. I was offloaded twice. And from Clark I tried to catch up the CFO seminar but at the CFO office, the counselor was looking for the birth certificate of my fiance but my fiance is already there in Hongkong and his birth certificate is not with him and so I didn’t get the certificate which the Immigration Officers are looking for.
I’m so depressed!
Thanks anyway for this blog.

I’m so sorry to know that your plan messed up. In times like travelling or in this case getting married, both you and your fiance should have a copy of each others important documents. I also think you should have left together with your fiance for Hong Kong.Based on all the things you mention, I feel that you didn’t plan everything exactly or if you did plan it wasn’t organized. I remember when I planned mine I imagined all the possible things that could happen so I would be prepared for the worse case scenario. My husband was questioned by the immigration officer before we leave Manila for HK because his name when jumbled is similiar to a person who is blacklisted in the immigration if I was not with him we couldn’t have gotten married in HK. The immigration has every right to put your flight of hold and yu can’t question that. Good thing I was there to explain and I had with me all my husband’s documents. Shit happens as they say. Just charge it to experience. This is why I’m very happy I don’t need to deal with the process there in the Philippines unless I return there. I would also feel bad if I were in your place. Just learn from your mistakes. As long as your fiance is still with you, your wedding will still happen. If you still choose to marry abroad you now know what should and shouldn’t do. Things happen for a reason. Don’t let this incident ruin your future plans with your fiance. Pull yourself together and start planning. I wish you all the best.

You are right that CFO Certificate is only asked if you are leaving the counrty to join your spouse in another country, I am surprised that Philippine Immigration gave you a hard time to fly to HK, I’ve been to Hk 3 times and they we’re not that strict, I am Naturalized Canadian formerly Filipino and my husband is pure Filipino, we went to HK First time for our 1st yr anniversary and after 3 years we decided to get married in HK after reading your very informative blog, and like you tell everyone here, to just follow the steps in the HK website which is very precise and clear, and I THANK YOU FOR THIS BLOG! Now we are in the process for applying a visa for my spouse :)

It’s very nice to know that my blog has helped you. I try my best to remain optimistic and understanding regarding the gov’t process in the Philippines but it never fails to disappoint me and being optimistic can be very unrealistic esp. with certain situations. I hope your spouse’s visa application will go smoothly and tell him to not forget to attend the CFO Seminar to get the certificate.

Hi, Mynah, We got married there Last September and we didn’t have any problems going out from the Philippines, I don’t even remember immigration that strict in the airport in the Philippines, I think they just asked us the purpose of travel and I just told them that we are going to Disneyland, ( I guess they didn’t bother asking me much questions cause I have blue passport) we just went paid the travel tax and terminal fees for my mom, aunt as our winessess and suppose to be mother-in-law that time and and checked and that was it, so Hk is strict now, my hubby doesn’t have that CFO Certificate you were talking about, i feel so bad for what happened to you and your dream wedding, by the way we got married in Cotton Tree Marriage Registry. If you have questions or If i can be any of help, just let me know…hope everything works the next time you do it, ask the registry if they can move your wedding date :) take care

Hi, Annie. Mynah’s prob is not HK but Philippine Immigration. HK is not strict. The moment she opened her mouth and mentioned that she is going to get married in HK she’s screwed. CFO is needed if you are already married to a foreigner and you will be living in the country of your spouse. It seems the immigration officers are very sensitive with the idea that the moment you mentioned marriage/spouse/wedding, etc. and you don’t have CFO certificate passport you can’t fly even if your are not even married to your foreign spouse. All Filipinos married to foreigners must get CFO certificate when they go out to their spouse’s country. If they don’t have that CFO cert. even if you have spouse visa the imigration will not allow you to leave. Mynah just got unlucky coz I believe CFO Cert doesn’t apply to her yet.

Oh Yeah you’re right, the Phil. Immigration, but just thinking of it, why would she get that CFO Cert. right? like you said she wan’t even married and will not leave the Philippines for good to join her husband, something wrong with the procedure in Phil. She can complain about this, it ruin her special day , i feel so sad for what have happened to her :(

I think complaining in the immigration is a dead end road. I actually really feel bad for her the moment she posted her problem so I replied immediately. That’s why she should not stay depressed and start planning again. As long as her fiance is still there it will push through.

I agree that CFO doesn’t apply to me because I am not migrating yet but the thing is, the last time I went to Vietnam I overstayed there and the immigration officers were thinking I’ll be joining my husband-to-be after the wedding. They even suspect that he is my employer. And so because of their doubts about my travel, they asked me to join the seminar and counseling of the CFO to get certificate and stamp. And yes, I admit it is my fault that I am not ready for this.
I believe though, that they could move my wedding date but this would be another expenses. We have spent a lot already. My fiance paid for my ticket including the tickets of our witnesses. He’s ticket was expensive and the hotel is not cheap too so setting the wedding again within 3 months is not possible. So maybe I will secure everything first and apply again when me and my fiance are ready.
By the way, you were telling that we should have left together, well it is not possible because he came from Turkey as he was currently residing there. He left Philippines two weeks after the surprise visit.
Thanks for your concern and sympathy. I really appreciate it. At least I felt I found unknown best friends at this kind of situation.
To the blogger and to you Annie, Danke Schörn “Thank you” I really appreciate your concern and sympathy.
It’s my wedding day today woohoo!

Wow! This blog is really helpful. Thank you Mangoes and Pears for creating this! You are wonderful! You did a great job for bringing this up. Your words really cheers me up!
Thank you!
PS: Thanks for “miene liebe” for joining here. I’m glad you also gave your comment here…

Hi i’m kristine. Just wanted to ask. You said that after all the forms have been submitted, you need to appear in front of the registry to verify your identity and details. I am living in Australia and my fiance in the philippines we do not have time and budget to go to hongkong just for this matter. Is there a way around this or can we do this on arrival before we get married . Thanks

Hi, Kristine. We came to HK on the due date of the appearance which also happens to be the day before the scheduled ceremony. I think you should take time and read again the previous comments because I mentioned there the details of what I did.

I would like to ask if the time you made a personal appearance and an oath at 3/F, Low Block Queensway Government Offices, 66 Queensway, Hong Kong (Counter 20) was on the same day you had your wedding ceremony? Or were these two different occasions that required separate trips to Hong Kong?

I went to HK the day before my wedding ceremony for the personal appearance and oath. That day also happened to be the due date for our wedding. It depends on the due date that you’ll receive on your email. If you went past the due date of personally appearance, the wedding date will be cancelled. These things are all mentioned in the email. I have answered this same question several times. I suggest you read the previous comments because they are much detailed.

Hello,
We are planning to get married in Hong Kong this June or July. I’m a Filipina and my fiance is German. We just had a baby last year and we are very happy. The 3 of us will travel to Hong Kong once our papers is done. But for now I got a few questions. Here are my questions… :)
1. How did you do the mailing of the documents? Is it possible in LBC?
2. The dates of Marriage. Is it possible when they scheduled the appearance and send us the Confirmation Letter we can ask them the earliest dates available for the wedding? Will they reply?
3. And do we need to go there together for the appearance or one person is enough to make an oath?
4. The documents that we downloaded, the Registration of Marriage Form and Noticed of Intended Marriage. We leave it blank the Chinese Name, Occupation in Chinese, HK identity card no., and Local Connection because we don’t have. Do we need to notarized all the pages also?
Thank you very much!!!!

Hi Leah & Toni, let me answer your questions.
1. I don’t know about using LBC because I haven’t used that in sending my documents. I often use EMS, FEDEX or DHL. I used EMS with all my docs sent to HK last 2011.
2.You can choose the date of your marriage or do what I did. I had mentioned this on the comments so please just read it there. All the things written on the comments are helpful.
3. When we went for the oath taking, we were there together with our passports because they checked those, too. I don’t know about going there alone.
4. In my case, I never leave a blank page. Whenever there is something not applicable to me I always write “NA” on any paper. That’s what my father taught me. So I did like that. There is an instruction on the HK gov’t site on what documents you need to notarize. But in my case, I think I decided to notarize everything because I didn’t want to take any chances. It was also not expensive when I had it notarized. It’s up to you if you want to follow what I did. But I highly suggest that you stick to the instruction on the HK gov’t website because it’s updated.

Hi, we are about to notarized our papers. Problem is they are searching for our signature. While reviewing the documents on the Noticed of Intended Marriage Form which has lots of Chinese writings also. I found out that there is a paper for Minor and Divorced Couple. But were never been married to anyone before and none of us is a minor either. So I think the paper that is missing and needs one of our signature is the Statutory Declaration ( page 5 ) that says I have been cohabiting and stating that a child was born to us. My question is do I need to print two copies of that in his name and the other one my name or just one? I’m also curious of the Noticed of Intended Marriage ( Page 1) Stating below Witness my hand this: and Party giving the notice.? I wanna ask you since you already did it and you might know and remember what you put there? Or you signed there also? I was confused since I wanna notarized all our papers to not commit mistakes where to sign.

I’m sorry but find you comment very confusing. What I can say is I followed the instruction on the HK govt site and their instructions are clear. I have mentioned on my previous comments exactly what I did with my papers. Take time in reading them over and over or ask someone to read it for you and have them explain it to you in case you still don’t get it or miss out on some vital info.

lea, only one of you has to accomplish the Notice form. If any of the Statutory Declaration forms apply in your situation, accomplish the page. If you’re not divorced(page3)/cohabiting(p5)/there’s no child(p6)/minor(p9), just put N/A and have it all notarized. Pages 4, 7, 8 and 10 are just the same 4 statutory declaration forms but in chinese. In page 1 you sign in the space above Party giving notice(you), beside Witness my hand this(signed by my hand). this just means you sign your name, 1 signature in that space. I’m helping my sis with her forms. Even if she only has to accomplish pages 1 and 2, we’ll still send all 10 pages just to be sure. hope this helps.

Hi there! Id like to thank you for sharing your experience and being so detailed in your blog, i followed everything you said ( same as their hk website) and we got married last February. Thanks alot. More power!

Just wanna share my experience. I already sent our complete papers together with the bank draft last friday, May 30, 2014. We also got the bank draft from BPI Bank Boracay Island branch. But today the bank just called me that our bank draft is not valid anymore to Hong Kong since they got a noticed that their transaction in Hong Kong banks is already expired since April this year. :,(((( They failed to check it and now they are calling me that I can only get back my money once the bank draft is returned to me. I know, it was not much money and sending papers costs me 700 php through LBC. But all my time and effort and all this mistake is wasted to nothing. :((( I opened an account to them deposited some money believing they can help me. I went to the manager and ask how can they help me since I wanna get married this july and that I need the bank draft to process all my papers and I wasted some money for sending my papers because of their error. He just told me that he cannot help me and better to do it with another bank and he can only return my money once the bank draft is returned to me!!! I’m so horrified I got a photocopy of the bank draft and a receipt but they don’t accept. Anyway, its time to move on. I hope I help you with this information about BPI transaction. Does anyone know what banks offer bank draft?
Thanks everyone!!!

Thanks for that important info. I hope those who read my blog read all the comments here for updated info. BPI shouldn’t have accepted your money of they don’t do that transaction anymore. I don’t have info for banks doing bank draft for HK since that’s my only experience. You better ask around the banks there. I hope everything goes well.

Thank you for your reply. We truly appreciate it!
We already sent out our papers and I signed the way you explained it. :) Thanks. Although, now we are having problems with bank draft. I need to find another bank that can do us the bank draft.

Hello! My fiancé and I wants to get married this July 2014, this 3 mos. and 14days rule is confusing to me..can somebody please make me understand if I can still process our requirements even if I only have a month to prepare. Thanks in advance and God bless to all.

I believe if you read the previous comments you’ll have understanding regarding the process since I have provided the dates of my experiences there. Just be patient in reading everything. They are all informative after all.

Basically, your Notice will be displayed publicly in HK (like displaying the Bans in the parish church) for at least 15 days. I read somewhere here it takes 3 days for your papers to arrive in HK, then 7 days for them to process and only then will they display for 15 days your Notice. So, about 25 days before they schedule your wedding. Maybe they can process it less than 7 days but it still takes at least 3 weeks. A month in advance to give Notice is alright but you have to consider the availability of the registries. We followed mangoes&pears choice to let the registry decide (box 1: first available timeslot) because we worried if we had to go to HK 2x just to meet their requirement of appearing to do the affidavit (if you miss this appointment i think you have to send a new Notice again). We want the wedding to be only a few days after appearing at MRRO. We’re still confirming if HK still accepts bank drafts frm Phil banks. I read leatoni’s comment just now. If we’re able to courier this June20, we expect them to schedule either as early as around july20 (yikes typhoon season) to as late as first weeks of September (autumn!). that’s the 3 months wherein marriage has to take place or else a fresh Notice has to be given.

I have a question again. Our wedding is set this July 7, 2014. What do I need to bring before going to the Philippine Embassy? I’m worried cos do they need to take our original Marriage Certificate given by the Marriage Registry? If so, is it possible to request two copies original? My fiance is German he needs to go to Apostille Services in HK and bring certified true copy or the original Marriage Certificate. Hope you could give us info. I tried to email the Philippine Consulate in Hongkong (pc.hongkong@dfa.gov.ph ) but their system is down and my email failed permanently. Thak you very much.

Hi hello there, I read your blog and really its like a gift from heaven. Its so helpful for me and i understand your blog more than all the instructions i have read while browsing in the internet about marrying in HK.
Can i tell you about my situation because im hoping your the only person who can enlightened me about this.
✌My fiance is a hongkong national and we are planning to get married hopefully this year since we cannot marry in the philippines due to some problems that arises while his visiting me in the philippines. I am expecting our first baby this september but i told him we can marry after my pregnancy hopefully this november.Im in my legal age to marry but i still need my parent consent for the marriage since im only 23 , my fiance is 29. Is it much more easier if he will be the one to file for our marriage or me here in the philippines?
Do i need to obtain visa because im planninv to stay in hong kong for 1 month prior to the wedding day available . i was there in hong kong last january to meet up his parents so i already have a record in the philippine immigration, my question is, will they still allow me to go there in hongkong knowing that i will go there to get marry?or if they will ask me, can i jist say im visiting my fiance or just looking around?i dont have work at this time since i got pregnant. I stopped months ago. What are the documents i need to bring with me so this wont be problem with both immigrations here in pH and HK? Do i need to ask my fiances copy of hongkong id card, birth certificate,work certificate and financial docu. proving he can financially support me while processing our marriage?what are the things i need to send to him to process our marriage if he will be the one working on it and if no, what are the documents he need to send to me for me to start the wedding plan.im planninv to follow what you did like booking the entire process online. Please help me. I am really lost and helpless . sorry if i ask too many questions but i know you can help me sort things out. Thank you so much

Hi Mangoes and Pears,
Thank you for the blog it is very helpful. I and my BF will be going to Hongkong on September 4-10 because we wanted to have our Civil Wedding there.
Is the process of Civil Wedding still the same as stated above?
The target wedding date is September 9, 2014. Our friends will arrived on same date in the morning.
Please advise.
Thanks,
Jules

Of the 3 ways to get married in HK, the simplest way is a registry wedding, which is what most have the time and resources to do. you have to research and read on the process if you want either a church wedding or will hire a civil celebrant in HK (if you want a secular location like the beach or hotel there). but both are too costly for most people.

Hello @mangoes and pears, I wanna ask again about the requirements posted in the web.its that all I need to submit? And wanna ask to about the notarized papers all the requirements is need to notarized before I send in hongkong? Since I’m here in Philippines now and my fiancée is in France now ,so it’s okay I’ll be the one to fill up the forms or we need to fill up together? And also my fiancée is divorce 3years ago is there anything that I need to know in my side?

Hi please help. I’m from New Zealand and my fiancé from Algeria. We are going to meet again in Hong Kong but this time we want to get married there. I was married before will it be a problem? Do we follow your procedures as above? we are arriving on the first of October till the 11th. Is it possible? Please advise me on this!

Hi. Since you were married then, follow the procedure posted on the HK govt website for those who had been divorced. As for the date, you have the option to choose or let them choose it for you. You will understand what I mean once you have printed the documents needed to be sent which are also on the HK govt website.

hello from Ohio, my name is Floyd:
my fiancés told me if I send her my passport, and my divorce decree it could hurry the process of our marriage in Hong Kong. I am coming from America to marry her. I heard, their a background check , so, do I get my background check here in the U.S.A or their in Hong Kong and do my Fiancés get her check in Hong Kong, and then again in the U.S.A. when I was married before I did not have to get a background check here In the U.S.A, so is this common in Hong Kong. just to get married. I have no problem I will pass, it’s just usual for me, when I heard another one of your listener talk about background.

I am in ministry so , soon after we are married, how long do I have to wait for my Fiancés, soon to be wife, help me in the ministry in the U.S.A.

also will my cost of fee be for the both of us or just me alone, just need clarity. I will love her, and I am grateful that our path had cross. thank you and God bless.

Hi Floyd, my spouse and I didn’t go through that background check. We just provided all the requirements as posted on the HK govt website. We never sent our original passports but merely notarized copy of them. I got married in 2011 so I don’t know if they have changed or added some requirements. Hopefully one of my readers can answer you on this. Good luck.

Hi Floyd, getting married to H.K. there’s no background check. I just got married last February 26,2014 there’s no requirements for that. Just follow all the requirements H.K. govt website. First, who apply for marriage in H.K.? Is it you or your fiancee? Regarding your passport you don’t need to give your original passport, just give her the photo copy, divorce decree you need to notarized there before you send to her. I guess the rest you can follow instruction.
When you get your marriage certificate from H.K. City Hall you can apply your wife for K3 Visa for her to come to USA. You can check or google it requirements how to appyl K3 Visa. I hope this can help you too

This is reply from the City Hall of H.K. i hope this can help you both.:

Dear Sir/Madam:

I am pleased to inform you that your marriage notice has been filed
on 29 January 2014 and an appointment at City Hall Marriage
Registry (Address : 1st Floor, High Block, City Hall, Central, Hong
Kong) at 03:30 pm on 26 th February 2014 (Wednesday) has been reserved for you.

Both of you, please come together to our office at 3/F.,Low Block,
Queensway Road Government Offices, 66 Queensway Road, Hong Kong
(counter 20) within office hours ON or BEFORE 25 February 2014
bringing along with the following original documents for completion of formalities:

1)Both original travel documents; and
2) Mr ___________ original divorce paper; and
3) the Print-out of this confirmation letter

I would like to remind you that you need to bring two witnesses
above the age of 18 with their original Hong Kong identity cards /
travel documents and fees (HK$715) on your wedding day.

Our office hour: Monday to Friday 8:45 a.m. to 4:45 p.m. (As time
is required for completion of formalities, you may wish to attend
our office before 4:00pm.)

Please note that our office will not be opened during the public holiday/s.

hello thank you for your great words. well, since the last time we talk, my fiances always said that her phone her cell battery is low always low. So, when we don’t talk she would say her battery is low. so, I ask her why do she love me and why do she wanted to married me. I told her how I felt about her and why I love her and want to married her. we Skype everyday until her phone battery go dead, she Skype through her cell. she said she love me because I love her. I needed more then just that, so when I ask her she never did tell me. one Sunday she said she will call me after church and before church she has let me listen to their church worship, which was great. so that Sunday she Skype on the way to the subway, she was taking the subway to church. she never call me and the whole day pass. I ask her was everything alright and still didn’t hear from hear. so, i said in a message through Skype is how we communicate I said how I was disappointing that not even a message to tell me that she was OK. well, she message me back and said that her love have change and she was hurt by me asking her what happen to her. well, not to go on, because actually i am hurting right now and I really loved her.
so, do you think maybe I was being trick she was asking me to send the money for the paper after I got a copy of me passport and my divorce paper. she sound almost cold. so, should I continual to go after her, which she still never told me why she love me or why she wanted to married me.

Hi. Greetings! I really need your help. I am so impress with your blog. Hope you can help me, thanks. How can I mail my requirements thru online? I am a Filipina and my fiance is a foreigner and we are planning to get married in Hongkong next month ( October 2014 ). We planned this before months ago but due to some circumstances, our plan was set now. God bless.

I didn’t process online so I can’t give you any advice regarding your concern. I can online tell you to follow the instruction on the HK govt website. Just hope that I have readers who have tried this so they can tell you their experiences. Good luck.

I don’t know about that. There is a turn around time and you can just inform on the application your desired date. Check on the previous comments because have stated there the dates on how the process went back then when I did mine 3 years ago.

We got married in Hong Kong this July 2014. I just followed the instructions here in Mango and Pears blog step by step. Im a Filipina and married to a German national. We have an easy experience since we make sure that we know everything first before taking risk. In February 2014 I sent an email to mrro@immd.gov.hk regarding my concerns about gettting married in Hong Kong and after a day or 2 they replied back. They sent me also all the requirements for this Marriage Application Form and Notice of Intended Marriage Form which is also written on this blog. They are really friendly. My first concern was how can I send the documents? First, I need to pay the prescribe fee of Intended Marriage which is HK$305. I paid in the form of bank draft at BPI since they are the only bank I know that issued it. Just follow all the details in number 4 of this blog regarding those details. Then after I have the bank draft I print all the document forms and fill it up, sealed it the notary public and sign it. (Note: Maybe you print 2 individual copies of all the form since Notary Public might ask you for an original copy. Just in case.) After, I finished all the papers I send all the documents via LBC in the address given in this blog….
The Marriage Registration and Records Office
3/F, Low Block Queensway Government Offices
66 Queensway, Hong Kong
It takes 2-3 working days to arrive in Hong Kong.( Note: Make sure to check also the office schedules in Hong Kong and Holidays so you would know if there is delay. )
After 4 days I got an email for them saying that our dates on our wedding is approved! :)
We got married July 7, 2014 and very thankful for this site. Cheers!C:D

hi… my fiance and i would like to get married in HK also, we’re both filipino, camn we get married by HK ministry of the philippine embassy ther in HK will do the ceremony? please avice us respectively..

Hi , im karen , filipina and planning also to get marry in hongkong with my german citizen fiance..sorry can i ask for some help im kinda confused and dont have the time to read all the comments and replies coz im really really busy at the moment so im thinking to write my question directly, so if im planning to get marry in hongkong the first thing to do is secure the forms and after filling it up i will have it notarized and send the requirements and docs together with the bank draft on the address above, is that the first thing to do?i wont give notice first to the said office that i would send them my requirement? So ill send them right away without informing them that ill be sending a notice of intended marriage? Il appreciate the reply thanks a lot

If you don’t have time to read the comments, just read the procedure on the HK govt website since that one is accurate and easy to understand. Actually, all you need is to read the HK govt website. I did everything just by reading that so I know it’s easy to understand. You don’t even have to read this blog if you understand the HK govt website. This blog only serves as a guide for those who have a hard time with the procedure on the website. But since you don’t have time to read the comments here, maybe this kind of thing is not meant for you coz it requires a lot of reading to make sure everything is correct. Or maybe just pay someone to process this for you if you are really busy and want to really get married in HK. You just have to find that person coz I know no one. Good luck.

Hello ill just wanna ask i am filipina and my boyfriend is a canadian if we get marry in HK..is it the easy way to process documents for applying visa to Canada?..because here in philippines there is lots of requirements needed when you apply visa

Hello
I’m
Marissa from Negros.
I would like to remarry again but my birth certificate indicates that I’m married. I am divorced and have divorce papers. I guess, in order to marry in Hongkong one needs a cleared status from the NSO and judge that I’m clear to mArry. I’m asking because they say it’s so easy to marry there but a birth certificate that says married is certainly not the right paper right ?
Hoping for your reply

First, birth certificate doesn’t indicate you are married. It shows the details of your birth.:) As long as your civil status in NSO is married and your nationality is Filipino, it will never be honored in the Philippines or in other countries. You must fix your NSO civil status first to avoid problems.

Hi! I am in Canada and my common law husband is in the Philippines. I would like to ask if we should be both present doing the oath or either can just do the oath? Also my marriage with my ex is not yet annuled, will the NSO issue a marriage cert for me still? Thank you.

I think both of you should be there because that is the time for them to verify both of your passports. I may be wrong since I didn’t do such so just visit the HK govt website for the exact details. If your partner is not yet annulled, it means that person’s NSO civil status is married. We all know marrying a married person in any country is illegal. You have to remember that you have to report it to the Philippine Embassy and they will know the true civil status of you both so there is no hiding and it will just go to waste. Fix your papers and do it right.

Hi! I am in Canada and my common law husband is in the Philippines. I would like to ask if we should be both present doing the oath or either can just do the oath? Because I am planning to just go there on the week of our planned wedding.

Hello, congrats for your wedding :) I would love to know once you’re done with the wedding in HK, then how is the procedure to register the marriage in your country through the consulate in HK? I’ve read that it’s necessary the translation of the certificate in the language of the country you live and then it has to be legalized , but how to “legalize” it? Can you just go to your country consulate and register it ? or it needs to be done other steps?
Thank you in advance .

I already mentioned the procedure and that answers the question on how to legalize the papers. I don’t think there are other steps because if there were other steps the papers still must go through those gov’t offices. I don’t think there is another way around. The procedure is very easy so I don’t think there is a need to find another procedure.

Hi. This blog really help me a lot. I hope you can help me with my problem. Do you know any bank that offer a bank draft to Hong Kong? I went to the BPI but they told me they can’t issue anymore a bank draft to Hong Kong. My bank also ask me to open a dollar account if I want to ask for a bank draft. Please, I really need your help.

Yes, it was mentioned in the comments by one of my readers that BPI doesn’t offer bank drafts anymore. I don’t live in the Philippines anymore so I can’t assist you with that. Probably some of my readers can help you or you can inquire in other banks.

Hi, it’s me again. do you think it’s already too late to process our papers and get married next month? Our required documents are already ready and I’m just waiting for the bank draft to be release this friday. I’m just worried about this. It takes time for me to search for a bank that issue bank draft to Hong Kong.

hello Rain, as said before it’s all written above, anyway you don’t have to notiraze the mr21b form but a declaration that will be done by the notary when you go there and then send it together with mr21b form to hk.

Thank you for answering my question. Now I get it. May I ask, Do I need the CFO certificate or attend the CFO program when we go to Hong Kong? I’m done with this program, however, I have not receive my certificate yet due to their requirements. I’m just worried, because my fiance will be arriving soon to pick me and we will go together to Hong kong for our wedding.

In my case, I only got the certificate once I’m about to process the spouse visa. As you know, you haven’t married yet so you don’t have NSO marriage certificate which is needed. I’m sure that was mentioned to you when you attended your CFO seminar. Once again, please read all the previous comments to avoid problems and possible mistakes. I have a feeling you are likely to have such since you are asking as simple as this even if you have read already the comments. Please do yourself a favor and read it again or have someone do it for you. Make a list if it helps you remember. I hope I’m wrong because if you don’t do things right you’ll end up wasting your money, feeling disappointed, and delaying your marriage. I am merely sharing my experience here which was almost 4yrs ago. You have to do your own research, too.

Hi! My boyfriend and i are planning to go to hk to get married. But currently his status is his annulment is currently on going. Will there be a problem if we checked the options like: bachelor, separated, widow. Let’s say we declared that he is a bachelor, will they find out if we’re telling his status true?thank u so much!

I can’t really answer properly since I didn’t experience that. I can suggest that you process when he is already exactly single. You can also email the HK govt and ask them your concern for accurate answer.

I am a Filipina and here in Canada. I am now a Permanent Residence. I was separated with my husband for 15 years and I filled a divorced in 2011 and by 2012 we started communicating again and we are now in good terms and everything is ok. I filled my papers for my permanent residence and include my husband. when I filled my papers I submitted my marriage contract and the divorce paper. the immigration send me a letter that my husband is not qualified. when I got my Permanent residence I asked the immigration officer if I can re apply and sponsor again my husband and she said Yes I can. since I am divorced here and we are still married in Philippines somebody advice me to get married in Hong Kong and I start reaching for the website and I saw your blog. I am willing to marry him again so I can have a new marriage certificate and file and sponsor him again. is there any problem since in NSO we are still married? Pls reply

First of all I’d like to remind you that I am not a lawyer. I am commenting based on how I know the procedure. As long as you are still married in the Philippines and you are still holding Philippine passport you are bound by the Philippine law. Your NSO certificate should not be married if you want to get married again to a different person. You have to remember that any marriage outside your home country must be reported to it’s respective embassy and which will report it to NSO for it to be valid. You have to do everything right or else you are just waiting your money. When you petition someone to Canada your NSO will still be asked. Read my previous comments about this issue since this was also asked before. Fix your papers first.

I am planning to Marry my husband again for me to sponsor him. I print all the forms and was about to send the papers to hongkong. I was planning to get married in Hong kong by May or June.
but I am worried about the NSO since were are both married there.

You can’t get married to a different person if you are both or one of you is still married in the Philippines. Annul your marriage first. Getting married abroad won’t fix that. Even in another country they don’t allow that. Read my previous comments.

Hi! I am planning to get married in Hong Kong but i don’t have any idea how to process. We are both single. My fiance is Syrian and I’m filipina. i need to know what kind of the document we need to bring.

Hi Marilou. That’s the reason why I made this blog entry. All you need to do is read it as guide as well as all the comments. The links to the govt website is here as well. All you need to do is read. Good luck.

Hi,
My fiance is an American I am a Filipina, we both live in Beijing. As you clearly mentioned “I didn’t like to be involved with the schemes Philippines has to offer for someone marrying a foreigner. I know it will just cause delay of papers and under the table transactions.” I am also challenged running around my documents in our Phil. Embassy. I am frustrated for all the time and money wasted processing all those documents. We decided to get married Hongkong.
My questions are:
1. After sending all the requirements how many days does it take to get married in Hongkong?
2. After the oath and getting the receipt how many days to wait for the ceremony?
3. After the ceremony can we get the marriage certificate?

I have mentioned all those details on the comments. Be patient and read everything. It’s been 4yrs since I got married in Hong Kong. Quite a lot to recall for details that’s why I was exact when I amswered all the comments back then so please take time in reading them. Good luck.

hello
i just want to ask, me and my fiance is both married before and our annulment is on process for a long time since the Philippines is full of non sense with regards of this cases, they tend to make the case longer maybe because they want more money or something
nevertheless
i just want to ask if we can get married in hongkong since she is already working in there and i am planning to work as well
i know its not a logical question but since we really love each other well i might as well give it a shot of asking anyone of you guys
thanks in advance
Godbless

Hi i am an indian who is marrying my filipina gf who is in phils. she has got the bank acc, got the paper notarized n she got mine n her passport copy etc etc along with the bank draft. But do we also need to buy tickets and hotel booking and send them along with the other documents? shouldn’t we wait for the confirmation from HK ? in the website they require all documents including the travel documents i.e the flight tickets and hotel booking?

Hi Mangoes and Pears,i need your advice badly, My fiance and I planning to have marriage at HK,My Fiance is a Filipina but now she’s a Canadian citizen,She’s married also here in the Philippines and got divorced in Canada and they both Canadian citizen that time and they don’t apply as dual citizen.The lawyer advised her that she ca re marry at Hong Kong considering that she is not a Filipina and she’s not covered of Philippines Law.
Because as you said that it should be file the divorce here in the Philippines to recognized it,but the lawyer advise her that that don’t need it because they are both foreigner already.

hi mangoes and pears, first a very nice and helpfull blog..thank you for sharing your experiences :-)
i have a question…well i have sent all required documents and i am waiting some days already to receive a email from them….do you remember how long it takes them to provide a date?

Hi Josephine, getting married in Hong Kong doesn’t guarantee anything about your visa process. I already stated my reasons above for marrying there. I can’t say anything about applying for US spouse visa because I haven’t tried that. But as for applying for spouse visa for Korea, I don’t need to pass certain requirements that don’t apply to us like the interview and some docs for CFO.